31-year-old Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while hosting a Utah event for his organization on Wednesday, September 10th.
The outdoor event was called the “Prove Me Wrong” debate. In it, he invited college students to challenge his political and cultural views. Kirk was mid-sentence when he was shot in the neck and rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Later, at 2:40 p.m., President Donald Trump announced his death, paying tribute to him on Truth Social by saying, “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.”
Two people of interest were detained Wednesday under suspicion of being the shooter, one immediately after the shooting and another in the evening. They have both since been released without charges. The FBI has now released new images of the current person of interest, along with a $100,000 reward to anyone who offers up information on the person in the photos. While the shooter has not been located, they have been described as college-aged, and their firing position has been located by authorities.
Kirk’s body is to be flown to his hometown in Phoenix, Arizona, by the vice president and second lady on Air Force Two, officials said.
Elected officials from both parties swiftly condemned the attack and denounced political violence.