E-Paper
Why did Tyler Robinson target Charlie Kirk? What the investigation has revealed so far about motive
Tyler Robinson was arrested as a suspect in the fatal shooting of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk.
Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old Utah native, was arrested as a suspect in the killing of 31-year-old conservative political activist, Charlie Kirk. The Turning Point USA founder and Trump ally was shot in the neck when he was attending an event at the Utah Valley University, and succumbed to his injuries soon after.
Authorities, when they initially announced the arrest of Robinson, had not shared a motive for the attack. However, now there has been a twist in the case, with reports claiming that Robinson lived with a transgender roommate, prompting questions about whether that might have had anything to do with the attack. Here's what the investigation into the Charlie Kirk shooting has revealed thus far.
Tyler Robinson's possible motives
Though authorities did not give a clear motive, they did provide an insight into how Robinson's mind was working ahead of Kirk's assassination. He had reportedly been part of a conversation where it was said that Charlie Kirk ‘spread hate’.
Also Read | Charlie Kirk's old message on forgiveness resurfaces amid Tyler Robinson death penalty calls
Utah Governor Spencer Cox had said “The family member referenced a recent incident in which Robinson came to dinner prior to September 10. In the conversation with another family member, Robinson mentioned Charlie Kirk was coming to UVU…the family member also stated Kirk was full of hate and spreading hate.”
Now, with reports of a transgender roommate emerging, other possible motives are also being looked at.
Transgender angle to motive?
Authorities are now also probing if Robinson believed Kirk's views on gender identity were ‘hateful’ to people, like the former's transgender roommate, Axios reported. The publication further reported that the roommate was ‘aghast’ on hearing the news of the manhunt for Robinson.
Also Read | Was Tyler Robinson a Groyper? Charlie Kirk shooting suspect being linked to alt-right movement
“That's what happened? Oh my God, no,” the roommate reportedly said, before handing over the phone to investigators to allow them to see the messages. Investigators found a contact named ‘Tyler’ and details of the conversation circled around the shooting. There are no concrete links yet, tying this Tyler with the suspect, Robinson, but investigators reportedly have enough proof to draw the connection.
