The Killing of Charlie Kirk
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Law enforcement in Utah say they are looking at "multiple leads" in the hunt for Charlie Kirk's killer, but no suspect is in custody
Meanwhile, sources say they have the name of a "person of interest"
Earlier, the FBI released images of a "person of interest" and offered a $100,000 reward for information
A high-powered rifle was found in woods near the shooting
Kirk, an ally of President Trump, was shot at a Utah university – officials said the suspect "appears to be of college age" and fled "into a neighbourhood"
We now have police audio shortly after the shooting – while our Verify team has looked for clues in the pictures released by the FBI
Earlier, a news conference was postponed on Thursday afternoon due to "rapid developments" – Trump later says he thinks "progress" is being made
Edited by Stuart Lau and Tinshui Yeung, with Nada Tawfik, Regan Morris and Christal Hayes at Utah Valley University
Utah Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason has spoken to the media about the suspect's movement before and aftr fatally shooting Kirk.
In an interview with NBC News, external Mason says it was easy for the suspected shooter to access the roof of a Utah Valley University building and open fire.
The building, Mason says, had open pathways and lacked locked doors.
Mason says the suspected shooter was tracked on security footage moving across campus to the roof.
The suspected shooter jumped from the roof down to a grassy area, out through a parking lot and fled into the woods after the shooting, he says.
Mason adds that the single shot that killed Kirk was fired from a distance of 175 yards – which is considered an "average shot" for a skilled rifleman, but that "it doesn’t necessarily require an expertise".
Mason previously said that the suspect blended in easily on the campus and appeared "to be of college age".
Earlier, BBC's US media partner CBS News reported that officials have said they know the name of the suspected shooter but have not yet released it.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles says Kirk "was very much" part of the family, and so his death "shook everyone to their core".
In an interview on The Scott Jennings Radio Show, she called Wednesday a "roller-coaster", during which they thought good news would follow the bad, but it didn't so it was "very rough".
She said that for many of them, it brought back memories of the assassination attempt that Trump endured on 13 July, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania.
"And then today is 9/11, so it's sort of a one-two punch," she added.
Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in front of hundreds of young people, many of whom recording on their phones at the time. Moments later, videos of his assassination could be seen on social media.
TikTok says it is working to avoid those videos circulating across users' feeds.
"We remain committed to proactively enforcing our community guidelines and have implemented additional safeguards to prevent people from unexpectedly viewing footage that violates our rules," TikTok's spokesperson Jamie Favazza says in a statement.
Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna says the video-sharing platform has told her "they will be removing the horrific videos of Charlie Kirk’s final moments".
We can now bring you some photos of Air Force Two – the vice-president's aircraft – departing Utah for Arizona, external carrying the body of Charlie Kirk.
As we reported earlier, US Vice-President JD Vance is also onboard the flight to Phoenix.
Tyler Bowyer, who was chief operating officer of Turning Point USA, which Kirk founded, posted a video of Kirk's casket arriving at the airport on social media.
"Thank you for bringing our hero home," he wrote, tagging Vance. "We are so grateful for you."
Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House
Since news of Charlie Kirk's death was announced, members of the Trump family – including the president and his sons Don Jr and Eric – have spoken fondly about the close personal ties they had with him.
Matt Dallek, a professor at George Washington University, tells the BBC that the relationship between Kirk and the Trump family was “really important” to his broader influence in both terms.
“Trump prizes loyalty above maybe anything else,” he says. “And if Don Jr is saying he was like a brother to him, that suggests just how great a supporter Kirk was.”
According to Dallek, Kirk remained loyal even during the fallout of the 6 January 2021 riots at the US Capitol, when some other conservative figures turned critical of Trump.
“At Trump’s lowest point, Kirk was there backing him,” says Dallek. “They had a maximalist bond.”
Charlie Kirk spoke at the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in 2022
As we've reported, Trump is heading to New York.
He's set to attend the Yankees-Tigers game in the city, the White House has confirmed.
Because of Trump's presence, the US Secret Service has alerted fans about heightened security.
The agency is also advising fans to arrive early and "consider leaving your bags at home to help speed up the security screening process".
On Wednesday, the Yankees held a moment of silence for Charlie Kirk at their home game, with an image of Kirk displayed on the stadium's large screen.
Two US officials and a law enforcement source say they believe they have identified the name of a "person of interest", according to the BBC's US partner, CBS News.
CBS adds that no arrest warrant has been issued yet.
Here's more from that statement from Utah's Department of Public Safety. It says:
We've just had a new update from law enforcement in Utah, who say they are looking at "multiple leads" in the hunt for Charlie Kirk's killer.
We'll have more from that statement shortly.Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House
At times, Trump's tone seemed to harden even more and he paced back and forth along the lengthy stream of reporters gathered on the lawn.
At one point, he suddenly came so close to me that I was momentarily terrified that I was going to accidentally strike him with the radio microphone pole I was holding just inches from his sternum.
When asked about the investigation and any potential leads, the president gave few details away.
"I have an indication," he said, his eyes narrowing. "But we'll let you know about that later."
He reserved his harshest words for the suspect that remains at large.
"He's an animal. Total animal, and hopefully they'll have him," he told us.
"What he did is disgraceful….what this man did, was disgraceful. Hopefully we'll have him and deal with him appropriately."
At one point, Trump thanked us and walked away, only to abruptly reverse course when he saw a young reporter that works for Turning Point USA – Charlie Kirk's organisation.
"They're great friends of mine," he said of the organisation.
After taking a few more questions on other matters, Trump walked away, quickly entering the helicopter before taking off.
It's possible we may hear from him again tonight – particularly if there are developments in the case. Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House
Donald Trump took off from the South Lawn of the White House at exactly 16:47 EST (20:47 GMT) – but not before coming over to talk to reporters for an extended Q&A session, focused largely on the death of Charlie Kirk.
At the start of the questions, Trump confirmed he had spoken to Charlie Kirk's wife and family.
"She's devastated, absolutely devastated," he said of Kirk's wife Erika.
When I saw him earlier this morning, Trump seemed unusually subdued, speaking softly and slowly. But now, he appeared to be his usual self – speaking with a louder, more forceful tone than before.
At one point, he was asked about his own safety – but said he is "not really" concerned.
"I'm really concerned for our country. We have a great country, but a radical left group of lunatics out there," he said. "We're going to get that problem solved."
Speaking about the gunman, Trump says: "Hopefully we'll have him, and we'll deal with him very appropriately."
He also says Charlie Kirk was an advocate of non-violence and that’s how he, the president, would like people to react.
Trump says he has spoken to Charlie Kirk's family.
Of his widow Erika, he says: "She's devastated, absolutely devastated."
Trump has just spoken about the manhunt for Charlie Kirk's killer, telling reporters he's really concerned for the country and that a "radical left lunatic" is out there.
Asked about the investigation, he says: "I'd rather not say, I think progress is being made."
He called the attacker an "animal" and Kirk a "great man".
Just a reminder – we still don't know the identity or motive of the killer.
President Trump has spoken to reporters at the White House before flying from Maryland, just outside Washington DC, to New York.
We’ll have some of those comments soon, plus analysis from our reporter Bernd Debusmann.
A British man who debated Charlie Kirk during his visit to Cambridge University earlier this year says he’s saddened about his murder.
Archie Mackintosh, 23, from Norfolk, debated Kirk and asked him a question about monogamous relationships in society, external.
“My initial reaction, as soon as I heard the news, was a feeling of sadness that he’s gone,” he tells the BBC.
“Despite the fact that I disagree with a lot of his opinions – maybe most of them – he was generally so driven about trying to make the world a better place in his eyes, and he was very promoting of open debate and free speech, which I can get behind. I think it’s nice having people like that in the world to challenge your own ideas.
“I enjoyed debating him because he said things that made me think. If nothing else, I got the impression that he was an incredible father and husband.”
People held placards at the US Embassy in Madrid
As night fell in Madrid, people gathered outside the US Embassy to light candles and hold placards of the conservative activist.
Meanwhile in Berlin, more than 100 people gathered for a vigil, including Beatrix von Storch, a leading figure of the far-right party AfD, according to Reuters news agency.
In Berlin, politician Beatrix von Storch (second from left) joins others holding candles
Photo of Charlie Kirk displayed at a vigil under the line "In Memory of Charlie Kirk, for freedom, patriotism and justice" in Berlin
Anthony Zurcher
North America correspondent
Charlie Kirk's killing is both another episode of shocking gun violence in America – and the latest in an ever-lengthening line of recent political violence.
Earlier this year, two Democratic state legislators in Minnesota were shot in their homes – with one dying from her wounds. Last year, Donald Trump was twice the target of assassination attempts.
Two years before that, a hammer-wielding assailant broke in to the home of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a prominent Democrat. In 2017, a man opened fire on Republican congressmen practising on a baseball field.
Many prominent Republicans and Democrats have lined up to condemn political violence and call for a cooling of rhetoric.
Trump, in a video address from the Oval Office posted on his Truth Social website, called the killing a "dark moment for America".
But he wasted little time in blaming the "radical left" for Kirk's murder. He ticked through some of the recent instances of political violence – those that targeted conservatives – and said his administration would find "each and every one of those who contributed to this atrocity and to other political violence".
Those comments are sure to be welcomed by those on the right who in the hours after the shooting called for a crackdown on left-wing groups.
"It is time, within the confines of the law, to infiltrate, disrupt, arrest and incarcerate all of those who are responsible for this chaos," conservative activist Christopher Rufo wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Utah Governor Spencer Cox – who has frequently spoken out against overheated political rhetoric and political divisiveness – on Wednesday night described a "broken" nation.
"Is this it?" he asked. "Is this what 250 years has wrought upon us?"
"I pray that is not the case".
Read more: Killing of Trump ally lays bare America's bloody and broken politics
We can now bring you police radio communication shortly after the shooting at Utah Valley University.
An officer can be heard saying there had been a shooting at Charlie Kirk's event and they were fielding several calls.
Another officer is heard saying "there was one shot" and mentions a staging area on campus.
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Listen: Police audio moments after Kirk shooting reported
Updates have been coming in thick and fast over the last few hours. Here's the latest:
Earlier, we were also expecting a news conference on investigation updates, but it was cancelled due to "rapid developments in our investigation", according to the Utah Department of Public Safety.
We'll keep monitoring the situation and bring you updates as soon as we have them.
Law enforcement officers investigate a residential yard in a neighbourhood near Utah Valley University
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