In the photographs, a young man wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses was captured in a stairwell of a building.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Utah authorities have released new photos of the “person of interest” in connection with the murder of conservative activist and President Donald Trump’s close ally, Charlie Kirk, at Utah Valley University.
In the photographs, a young man wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses was captured in a stairwell of a building. He was seen carrying a black backpack and wearing a shirt with what appeared to be an American flag printed on it.
“We are asking for the public’s help identifying this person of interest in connection with the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University,” the FBI’s Salt Lake City office said on X on Thursday, while sharing four new images of the suspect.
The shooter who assassinated Kirk and then vanished off a roof and into the woods remained at large more than 24 hours later.
What We Know About Suspected Shooter
The screenshots were taken from the campus’s surveillance footage from before Kirk was shot dead, the Utah Department of Public Safety said.
According to authorities, the suspect is believed to be a college-aged individual. The FBI has announced a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the identification and arrest of the person responsible for Kirk’s murder.
Officials said they are working “around the clock” to locate the individual as the manhunt for the killer continues. Authorities also recovered a “high-powered bolt action rifle”– the weapon believed to be used in the deadly shooting. It was found in a towel in the wooded area near where the shooting took place, according to Salt Lake City FBI Special Agent Robert Bohls.
A spent cartridge was recovered from the chamber, and three other rounds were loaded in the magazine. The weapon and ammunition were being analysed by law enforcement at a federal lab.
He further stated that a “footwear impression” and “a forearm imprint” have also been found, which are also in the process of being studied.
“I can tell you this was a targeted event”, Bohls commented on the attack.
Earlier, police said Kirk was killed by a single bullet fired from the roof of the school’s Losee Centre, a campus building 100-200 yards (roughly 90-180 metres) from the event area.
But they had yet to name a suspect or cite a motive in the killing they were treating as the latest act of political violence to convulse the United States across the ideological spectrum.
Charlie Kirk’s Murder
The attack, carried out in broad daylight as Kirk spoke about social issues from a university courtyard, was captured on grisly videos that spread on social media.
The videos show Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump who played an influential role in rallying young Republican voters, speaking into a handheld microphone when suddenly a shot rings out. Kirk can be seen reaching up with his right hand as blood gushes from the left side of his neck. Stunned spectators gasp and scream before people start running away.
The shooter, who investigators believe blended into the campus crowd because of a “college-age” appearance, fired a single shot from the rooftop where they were perched before jumping off.
