Suspect in Charlie Kirk’s assassination remains at large | CBC News

U.S. right-wing activist and commentator Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in the neck on Wednesday at an event at Utah Valley University in what that state’s governor described as a “political assassination.”

Authorities had not yet publicly identified a suspect. FBI Director Kash Patel said an unnamed “subject” had been detained for questioning and then released.

“Our investigation continues and we will continue to release information in interest of transparency,” he wrote on social media.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox had said at an earlier press conference that police were interviewing a “person of interest,” without providing further details about the person’s identity. At the same press conference, however, Beau Mason, the Utah Department of Public Safety commissioner, said the shooter remained “at large.”

In a video message taped in the Oval Office and posted to his Truth Social online platform, Trump vowed that his administration would locate the assailant.

“My administration will find each and every one of those who contributed to this atrocity and to other political violence, including the organizations that fund it and support it,” he said.

Cellphone video clips of the shooting circulating on social media showed Kirk, 31, addressing a large outdoor crowd at the school’s campus in Orem, Utah, around 12:20 p.m. MT, when a gunshot rang out. Kirk moved his hand toward his neck as he fell off his chair, sending the attendees running.

In another clip, blood can be seen gushing from Kirk’s neck immediately after the shot. Reuters has not confirmed the authenticity of the videos. 

The assailant likely fired from a rooftop, authorities said, adding that there were about 3,000 people gathered at the event. Jeff Long, chief of the university police department, said that he had six officers working the event, and that he co-ordinated with the head of Kirk’s private security team, which was also on site.

Trump ordered all government U.S. flags flown at half-staff until Sunday in Kirk’s honour.

WATCH | Trump announces Kirk’s death:

Charlie Kirk shot dead at university event, Trump says

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that U.S. right-wing activist and commentator Charlie Kirk has died after being shot during an event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Multiple media reports also say Kirk has died, and the New York Times said a spokesperson confirmed his death. Video of the incident circulating on social media showed Kirk addressing a large outdoor crowd when a loud crack that sounded like a gunshot rang out.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement that he was “appalled by the murder.” 

“There is no justification for political violence and every act of it threatens democracy,” he said.

The killing was the latest in a series of attacks on U.S. political figures, including two assassination attempts of Trump last year, that have underscored a sharp rise in political violence.

“This is a dark day for our state,” Cox, the Utah governor, said at a news conference. “I want to be very clear that this is a political assassination.”

Trump, who routinely describes political rivals, judges and others who stand in his way as “radical left lunatics” and warns that they pose an existential threat to the nation, decried violent political rhetoric.

“For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers and criminals,” Trump said in the video.

“This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we’re seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now.”

The reaction from Democrats was more muted. “We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy,” former president Barack Obama said in a statement.

An attempt at a moment of silence for Kirk in the U.S. House of Representatives degenerated into shouting and finger-pointing.

Kirk’s appearance on Wednesday was the first in a planned 15-event “American Comeback Tour” at universities around the country. He often used such events, which typically drew large crowds of students, to invite attendees to debate him live.

Seconds before he was shot, Kirk was being questioned by an audience member about gun violence.

“Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?” an audience member asked.

He responded: “Counting or not counting gang violence?” He was then shot.

Kirk, who co-founded Turning Point USA, the largest conservative youth organization in the country, played a key role in driving youth support for Trump last November. His events at college campuses nationwide typically draw large crowds.

Kirk was an effective and significant voice for the conservative movement. He had 5.2 million followers on X and hosted a popular podcast and radio program, The Charlie Kirk Show. He has also recently co-hosted Fox & Friends on Fox News.

After winning a second term, Trump credited Kirk for mobilizing younger voters and voters of colour in support of his campaign during a rally in Phoenix, Ariz., in December.

“You had Turning Point’s grassroots armies,” Trump said. “It’s not my victory; it’s your victory.”

Kirk was part of an ecosystem of pro-Trump conservative influencers — including Jack Posobiec, Laura Loomer, Candace Owens and others — who helped amplify the president’s agenda. He would frequently attack mainstream media and engage in culture war issues around race, gender and immigration, often in a provocative style.

At the White House, staff members, many of them young and admirers of Kirk, were ashen-faced as news of the shooting spread. Kirk was married and had two young children.

While the motive for the shooting is unknown, the United States is undergoing its most sustained period of political violence since the 1970s. Reuters has documented more than 300 cases of politically motivated violent acts since Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.