A high-powered, bolt-action rifle has been recovered in the shooting of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University. The weapon was found in a nearby wooded area where the suspect fled, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls.
“The FBI laboratory will be analyzing this weapon,” Bohls said. “Investigators have also collected footwear impression, a palm print and forearm imprints for analysis.”
Law enforcement officials released a few new details about the overnight investigation. Using video on campus, they’ve tracked the shooter’s movements from the point they arrived on campus — at 11:52 a.m. — and through the escape after the shooting. The individual is believed to have jumped off the building from which they shot from and then fled through a neighborhood.
Beau Mason, the commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, said technology is being used to get an identification.
“Our investigators have worked through those neighborhoods, contacting anybody they can with doorbell cameras, witnesses, and have thoroughly worked through those communities trying to identify any leads,” he said. “We do have good video footage of this individual.”
Photos of a person of interest have been released, and the FBI is asking for the public’s help in identifying the individual.
The shooter appeared to be of college age and is believed to have blended in on the university campus where Kirk was shot, authorities said as they continued to investigate.
Kirk was shot on the campus of Utah Valley University in the courtyard at the Sorensen Center. The single shot from a rooftop came at approximately 12:20 p.m. He was transported to Timpanogos Regional Hospital and later declared dead.
“This is not Utah. This is not what we're known for,” Mason said. “Over the past several weeks, we've seen this state come together to help families in mourning. Come together as a community to show what Utah is known for, for a state of character, of service, of camaraderie, of a neighboring feel. We will not stand for what happened yesterday.”
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Federal, state and local authorities are still searching for an unidentified shooter and working what they called “multiple active crime scenes.” Two people were detained Wednesday, but neither was determined to be connected to the shooting and both were released, Utah public safety officials said. Authorities did not immediately identify a motive.
Both persons of interest have been the subject of scrutiny and threats, Mason said. Neither were suspects, but people of interest. “They don’t deserve harassment” for being part of the investigative process, he said.
“We ask the public to be patient with the investigative process,” Mason said.
More than 130 tips have come in from the public, Mason and Bohls said. They continue to collect any photos and video, which can be submitted online.
“We truly rely on the public's help in these types of cases, and no tip is too small or insignificant,” Bohls said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Editor's note: This story is part of a rapidly evolving news situation and will be updated as new information becomes available.
