More information has come to light about how Tyler Robinson, who is accused of killing Charlie Kirk, was turned over to police while they were looking for a suspect.
At a news conference on Wednesday, Washington County Sheriff Nate Brooksby said he got a call from a former police officer friend who told him that Robinson, 22, was the shooter.
Robinson reportedly considered committing suicide, but his family persuaded him against it.
According to Brooksby, Robinson was apprehensive about the arrival of a SWAT team at his house, fearing that they would catch him.
The sheriff said he was also scared of being shot by the cops.
“He was fearful of a SWAT team hit on his house, or he was fearful of being shot by law enforcement. So part of the negotiation in getting him to bring himself in was that we would treat it as delicate and as soft as possible to make him feel comfortable to where he would show up at my office, and that’s exactly what happened,” Brooksby said.
“He asked basically for a peaceful, gentle, comfortable transition for him to come out,” Brooksby added.
“Tyler knew it was just inevitable with all the law enforcement pressure that he, his picture in the news, the gun, the gun on the news,” he said. “He knew it was inevitable that he would be caught.”
According to Brooksby, the call from his friend came in at 8:02 p.m. on Thursday.
“I could tell his voice was kind of shaky, so my first thought is, ‘Who died?’” he said. “‘Like, who’s he gonna tell me that died?’ And then I couldn’t fathom what actually came out of his mouth.”
“So he said, ‘Hey, I know who Charlie Kirk’s shooter is. I know the family through religious association, and he’s in Washington County now. And we’re working to get him to come in voluntarily,’” Brooksby continued.
“During that phone call, some information was provided about Tyler potentially having some suicidal ideation [and] was en route to a remote part of Washington County. The parents convinced him not to do that and conveyed that they would stand by him and help him surrender peacefully.”
WATCH:
Robinson asked to surrender in a “peaceful and gentle” way, which is what the sheriff agreed to, so that Robinson would give himself up. When he was caught, he was described as “quiet and somber.”
His office did not question Robinson while he was waiting for the main detectives to arrive.
The sheriff commented on Robinson’s family and Lance Twiggs, who is both Robinson’s neighbor and lover, saying: “They need to lay low for a long time.”
Earlier in the day, Brooksby informed Fox News that Twiggs is in a “safe space very far away from St. George,” Utah, where he and Robinson used to live. He also stated that police officers from outside his department are speaking with Twiggs’ friends and family.
Brooksby says that there is a deputy sheriff in Washington County with the last name Robinson who is not connected to the shooter, as was first thought. He urged the media to clarify that Robinson, who remains unconnected, continues to face harassment.
A family member who spoke to Fox News said that Robinson’s transgender lover lived with him in an apartment for about a year.
“He hates conservatives and Christians,” the relative said. “He hated us. He was not raised that way, but he, over the years, has become really detached [and] been radicalized.”
“He has obviously gotten progressively worse the last year or two,” the relative said, adding that he’s “always very angry.”
Robinson is being charged with aggravated murder, two counts of obstruction of justice, felony discharge of a firearm causing major bodily injury, two counts of tampering with a witness, and committing a violent crime in front of a child.