Prosecutors unveiled what they described as significant new evidence this week, arguing it links Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer to the scene of the fatal shooting during the opening days of a closely watched pre-trial hearing.
Tyler Robinson, 23, could face the death penalty if convicted of murdering Kirk at a Turning Point USA event held at Utah Valley University on September 10 last year.
The attack, which unfolded in front of a large crowd of students, triggered an intensive manhunt. Robinson was arrested 33 hours later after his father reportedly recognized him from images released of the alleged suspect and persuaded him to surrender to authorities.
Robinson has been held in custody in Utah since his arrest. A judge is now overseeing a week of pre-trial hearings to decide whether prosecutors have presented enough evidence for the case to proceed to trial.
Prosecutors are expected to lay out a wide range of evidence against Tyler Robinson, the man accused of assassinating Charlie Kirk, as pre-trial hearings began this week
Charlie Kirk addresses attendees at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on September 10 last year, shortly before he was fatally shot
POLICE INTERVIEW FOOTAGE OF ROBINSON’S TRANSGENDER PARTNER SHOWN IN COURT
The pre-trial proceedings took a dramatic turn when the judge permitted prosecutors to play police interview footage featuring Robinson’s transgender partner and roommate, Lance Twiggs.
In the interview, recorded in April 2026, Twiggs said he first met Robinson in person in 2023 when they moved in as roommates, and they began dating roughly two months later. He recalled on the morning Kirk was assassinated, Robinson left early in the morning and claimed he had to work a long shift.
He said he didn’t hear from Robinson again until 11pm that night, when Robinson told him to look under his keyboard to find a handwritten note. The note read, ‘I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it,’ according to court filings.
Twiggs recalled Robinson returning to their home by the next morning, and said Robinson was pacing around the home while avoiding questions about Kirk’s assassination.
Twiggs claimed Robinson eventually admitted to the assassination, began crying and told Twiggs ‘he wishes he hadn’t done it.’
Robinson said he was going to go to his parents or turn himself in.
Tyler Robinson’s roommate and trans lover Lance Twiggs is seen for the first time in his police interview. It was played at Robinson’s preliminary hearing on Thursday
TEXT MESSAGES ROBINSON SENT AFTER KIRK’S ASSASSINATION
After Twiggs’ video statement to the police was played, prosecutors presented text messages allegedly sent between Robinson and Twiggs after Kirk was killed.
The first message shows Robinson telling Twiggs to ‘drop what you’re doing, look under my keyboard.
Twiggs replied, ‘What? You’re joking right?… You weren’t the one who did it right?’
To which Robinson allegedly replied, ‘I am, I’m sorry.’
Robinson’s message continued, ‘I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down.
‘It’s quiet, almost enough to get but, there’s one vehicle lingering.’
Robinson allegedly then discussed trying to get rid of the rifle used to shoot Kirk, writing: ‘If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence.
‘Going to attempt to retrieve it again, hopefully they haven’t moved on. I haven’t seen anything in the news about them finding it. Will update you by midnight.’
Twiggs then asked Robinson how long he had been planning the shooting, to which he replied: ‘A bit over a week, I believe.’
After Twiggs’ video statement to the police was played, prosecutors presented text messages allegedly sent between Robinson and Twiggs after Kirk was killed
In texts presented in court, Robinson allegedly discussed trying to get rid of the rifle used to shoot Kirk
Robinson allegedly then discussed trying to get rid of the rifle used to shoot Kirk, writing: ‘If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence’
NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN VIDEO OF ROBINSON AT UVU CAMPUS
At his pre-trial evidence hearing on Tuesday, prosecutors presented never-before-seen surveillance footage which allegedly showed Robinson prowling the UVU campus in a Dodge Challenger on the day of the shooting.
In surveillance taken moments before Kirk was killed, the suspect was said to have been walking with an apparent limp – keeping his right leg straight as he climbed stairs on the way to the ‘sniper’s perch’ on a nearby rooftop.
The video blew a hole in conspiracy theories that claim Robinson ‘never set foot on the campus.’
At Robinson’s pre-trial hearing on Tuesday, prosecutors presented never-before-seen surveillance footage allegedly showing Robinson on the day of Kirk’s killing – including him walking with an apparent limp as he made his way to the rooftop
However, prosecutors hit a hurdle on the first day of the evidence hearings on Monday as Utah District Court Judge Tony Graf rejected surveillance footage put forward by the state, as he said he was ‘concerned’ it had been edited.
The footage had been altered with circles around items of interest and zooms at key moments, which prosecutors said were ‘only added to make it easier to view.’
The early ruling came as the first cop at the scene, Utah Valley University police officer Chris Bagley, also admitted in his testimony that he did not have bodycam footage from the day of Kirk’s assassination to back up his testimony, because his camera ‘ran out of batteries.’
Despite hitting early hurdles in the evidence on Monday, prosecutors only need to convince Graf of probable cause in taking Robinson to trial, a lower bar than the ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ standard needed to ultimately convict him.
When Robinson was taken into custody, authorities said his construction worker father, Matt, convinced his son to surrender to investigators after recognizing him in surveillance images.
The images of the alleged suspect showed a man in a dark graphic T-shirt, dark hat and jeans from the UVU campus.
According to prosecutors, the father texted Robinson and said, ‘Tyler, is this you? This looks like you.’
When Robinson was taken into custody, authorities said his construction worker father Matt convinced his son to surrender to investigators after recognizing him in surveillance images (above) from the day Kirk was killed
Previously released footage allegedly showed Robinson stalking the UVU campus before the shooting
Authorities are also expected to cite the previously released footage, showing the suspect climbing onto the roof of the Losee Center building before opening fire moments later
Prosecutors say Robinson drove a grey Dodge Challenger for four hours to the UVU campus, and on Tuesday they presented never-before-seen footage of the vehicle stalking the area before Kirk’s assassination
Robinson allegedly confessed to his father when confronted and initially said he would ‘rather kill myself than turn myself in,’ but he was later convinced to confide in a family friend who worked with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
The FBI said it received more than 7,000 tips and leads in the first hours of the probe, and investigators rapidly compiled surveillance and forensic evidence from the scene.
Prosecutors say Robinson drove a grey Dodge Challenger for four hours to the UVU campus, and on Tuesday they presented never-before-seen footage of the vehicle stalking the area before Kirk’s assassination.
Authorities are also expected to cite previously released surveillance footage, showing the suspect climbing onto the roof of the Losee Center building before opening fire moments later and then running away.
THE WEAPON AND AMMUNITION
Police say Robinson stuffed his rifle down one leg of his pants in order to smuggle it on campus.
The weapon was described as a bolt-action rifle with one spent round. It was found after in a wooded area near where Kirk was shot and, according to police, a towel wrapped around the weapon tested positive for Robinson’s DNA.
Investigators have also claimed to have found bullet casings engraved with political messages in the gun.
One read: ‘Hey fascist! Catch!’
Investigators claimed to have found bullets engraved with political messages in the gun Robinson allegedly used (above), including one reading, ‘Hey fascist! CATCH!
HARROWING POLICE TESTIMONY
Sgt. David Hull, a Utah law enforcement officer, walked through Robinson’s movements on September 10.
He said the suspect visited the campus numerous times before the shooting, interacted with Turning Point members, ate Chick-fil-A for lunch and then changed his clothes before the murder.
On Monday, Bagley – the first officer at the scene – testified that he was near the stage when Kirk was hit by a single bullet in the neck, sending the crowd scrambling for safety.
Bagley described the moments as ‘chaotic,’ but said he quickly realized there was a raised roof across from where Kirk was shot that could have been where the assassin fired from.
He testified that he raced to the rooftop of the Losee Center building and found a ‘sniper pad,’ with the gravel on the roof imprinted from where the suspect had laid down to take the fatal shot.
Utah Department of Public Safety agent David Hull testified that Robinson visited the campus multiple times, interacted with Turning Point members and even ate Chick-fil-A before the murder
In cross-examination from Robinson’s attorney Kathryn Nester, Bagley said he reported finding an empty pistol holster on the ground after the crowd fled.
Bagley admitted he did not take the holster into evidence, and said he did not have any bodycam footage from that day because his camera ran out of batteries.
When investigators scoured the scene, they later discovered a bolt-action rifle wrapped in a towel left near the campus.
Engraved on unfired bullet casings found with the rifle were political messages that read, ‘Hey fascist! CATCH!’, and ‘If you read This, you are GAY. Lmao’, officials said.
In the chaotic manhunt for Kirk’s killer, authorities issued a $100,000 reward for information leading to an arrest – and arrested two other people during the 33-hour search. They were quickly released without charges.
According to court documents filed when Robinson was arrested, investigators also found a trove of messages he sent to his partner that referenced the shooting.
DISPUTED DNA EVIDENCE
On Tuesday evening, prosecutors presented bombshell DNA evidence that they claimed tied Robinson to the murder weapon and a screwdriver found on the roof.
They submitted an FBI report that says DNA found on a towel wrapped around the murder weapon and the screwdriver was tied to both Robinson and his transgender lover, Lance Twiggs.
Prosecutors said the FBI is confident that Robinson matches the DNA found by investigators, claiming it is statistically extremely unlikely to belong to another person.
On Tuesday, prosecution witnesses confirmed they were confident in the lab report, with FBI forensic investigator Amanda Bakker saying Robinson’s DNA aligned with 95 percent of the sample they tested.
But Robinson’s team is pushing back. His lawyers say they cannot be confident in the veracity of the samples or how they match Twiggs.
‘She can’t match Mr. Robinson to the questioned samples,’ Defense lawyer Michael Burt said of the FBI specialist who first confirmed the match.
Prosecutors are pushing for the issue to be raised again at trial.
Robinson texted his transgender partner, Lance Twiggs, ‘I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I’m going to take it’, according to authorities
Matt and Amber Robinson, the parents of Charlie Kirk’s accused killer Tyler Robinson, arriving at court on Monday for their son’s pretrial hearings
Robinson allegedly told his transgender boyfriend Lance Twiggs, ‘I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I’m going to take it.’
The 23-year-old allegedly told Twiggs to find a note he left under his keyboard, which read, ‘If you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry. I left the house this morning on a mission, and set an auto text.’
‘I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out,’ Robinson wrote, according to Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray.
Authorities previously claimed Robinson’s family told investigators that the suspect had become increasingly political in the years before the shooting, per Robinson’s arrest affidavit.
This included telling his family at a dinner that Kirk would be speaking at UVU and that he didn’t agree with his conservative views.
Twiggs is not expected to testify in person at Robinson’s pre-trial hearings, but prosecutors say they will present video testimony from him into evidence.
