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.
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.
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.”
FBI Director Kash Patel has provided an update on the investigation of Kirk’s assassination, saying the FBI is “pursuing every lead.”
Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested and charged with Kirk’s murder, but Patel said the FBI is looking into the “possibility of accomplices.”
“We are meticulously investigating theories and questions, including the location from where the shot was taken, the possibility of accomplices, the text message confession and related conversations, Discord chats, the angle of the shot and bullet impact, how the weapon was transported, hand gestures observed as potential ‘signals’ near Charlie at the time of his assassination, and visitors to the alleged shooter’s residence in the hours and days leading up to September 10, 2025,” Patel said in a post on X.
Patel added, “The entire FBI mourns the loss of Charlie Kirk. We will not rest until justice is served, and our investigation into this assassination will continue until every question is answered.”
The online messaging platform Discord confirmed reports that about two hours before Robinson was taken into custody, he posted messages to a small group of friends on the platform.
One message read, “Hey guys, I have bad news for you all … It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this.”
Patel addressed the Discord message during his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, saying that the FBI is investigating “anyone and everyone involved in that Discord chat” with Robinson.
Patel said there are “a lot more” than 20 people linked to Robinson on Discord, “and we’re running them all down. … Every single one.”
“There are a number of individuals that are currently being investigated and interrogated, and a number yet to be investigated and interrogated, specific to that chat room. So we are very much in our ongoing posture of investigation,” Patel told senators, adding that other people could be involved.
Robinson was charged with several crimes last Tuesday, including aggravated murder. Last week, prosecutors said they would seek the death sentence.
Robinson did not publicly plead guilty on Tuesday. Before his next court date on September 29, the judge told him that the court would give him a lawyer.