The FBI said that Tyler Robinson, who is accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, may have gotten help from an “extended network.” Officials say that the suspect presented “multiple warning signs” in the days before the incident.
Robinson is said to have shot and killed Kirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA, on September 10 during a student Q&A session at Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem, Utah. The shooting happened around 12:20 p.m. local time.
Groups Being Watched
The New York Post’s first reports said that police were already investigating into whether online communities connected to Robinson knew about his plans ahead of time. These groups include pro-trans online forums and “furries,” a community that is said to be fascinated with sexualized animals. There are also groups on the online gaming platform Steam and Armed Queers SLC, which is said to have taken down its Instagram profile following the assassination.
Dan Bongino, the FBI’s Deputy Director, has said that the investigation has grown, though. Bongino said on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” that federal officials are now also looking into whether anyone in the audience, including a TikTok user who was asking Kirk a question at the time of the shooting, knew about Robinson’s plan ahead of time.
Bongino stated that the FBI is “looking into” if Kirk’s murder was “part of a larger effort” and will be “dropping a lot of paper, a lot of subpoenas out there” to find out if there is a larger network. The goal of the investigation is to find out if somebody sent money or didn’t report a known plan.
When questioned if there might be a link between the timing of the shooting and a question Kirk was addressing regarding mass shootings by trans individuals, Bongino said, “We’re looking into that.” I don’t want to state for sure if there was a relationship or not right now.
Warning Signs and the Suspect’s Effects
Bongino also said that Robinson displayed a lot of indicators that something was wrong before the murder. He said that family and friends had seen the suspect become “more political.” This happened after Robinson talked to a family member who is not named at a recent family event. They both said they hated Kirk.
A family member of Robinson’s roommate, Lance Twiggs, told Fox Digital that the roommate may have changed the suspect’s political views. The relative stated, “I think Tyler got a whole lot worse in the year they have been dating.” They also said that Twiggs and Robinson, who are said to be dating, are “big gamers, and obviously they have that group that influences them as well.” “But my gut tells me [the roommate] did more of the influencing,” the relative said.