FBI officials recovered the bolt-action rifle used in the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Wednesday at a Utah Valley University event. The assassin remains at large.
Two suspects were arrested in the hours following the assassination, but both were released following questioning. As of writing, the killer has been at large for over 18 hours.
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Here’s everything to know about the manhunt for Kirk’s killer:
What have officials said?
At a Thursday press conference, authorities said they recovered the murder weapon: a high-powered, bolt-action rifle. The weapon was left in a wooded area, which has since been swept and secured.
The FBI is working to get fingerprints off the weapon.
Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason told reporters that authorities had a “good video” of the shooter. The suspect was described as being of college age and arrived on campus about half an hour before the murder. The assassin jumped off the roof after the shooting and fled into a nearby neighborhood.
The killing was believed to be a targeted event, and there is no danger to the public, the authorities said.
A live feed of the Utah County police scanner described the suspected shooter as wearing jeans, a black shirt, a black mask, and a black vest and carrying a “long rifle.” Another officer said the shooter was wearing a “black mask.”
Mason confirmed the description at a press conference, saying the suspect was wearing all dark clothing.
The assassin is believed to have shot Kirk from a position on top of the Sorensen Student Center, several hundred feet away from him, and then made a hasty retreat.
The FBI created a digital tip line for members of the public to submit information.
Who is taking part in the manhunt?
The FBI and Utah Department of Public Safety are co-leading the manhunt, “in unison with the Utah County Attorney’s Office, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, and the local police departments,” according to a statement from the Utah DPS.
FBI Salt Lake City Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls said the agency was providing tactical, operational, investigative, and intelligence support.
Mason outlined the difficulties in the investigation, stressing that the crime scene was a “very large area,” ABC News reported. He said the “only information” they have as of late Wednesday was taken from CCTV footage on campus.
Authorities are combing through all footage related to the event.
“They could be using cellphone data … cameras, you know. A lot of jurisdictions — and I don’t know if the university had it — have license plate readers that capture license tags or surveillance cameras from public street lights and things like that around the time of the shooting or shortly thereafter,” Chris J. Quick, a retired FBI special agent with over 30 years of federal law enforcement experience, told the Washington Examiner.
As for what investigators will be looking into, Quick said the gun used will give them a lot of information.
“That was either a hunting rifle or an AR-style rifle — probably with a scope. That tells investigators a lot. They’ll be going to gun stores, looking for purchases of that kind of weapon. The bullet itself will tell a lot about what type of weapon they’re looking for,” he said.
“It looks premeditated. If it was planned — and it appears to be — then it’s about identifying what steps were taken before the shooting and tracing those backwards. That’s how cases like this are built,” he added.
What security measures were put into place?
Despite the wide-ranging manhunt, there were no immediate reports of any major highway or airport closures. Security measures were limited to college campuses in Utah. The site of the shooting is about 8 miles from the nearest airport, Provo Airport.
The UVU campus will be closed for the rest of the week, and classes have been canceled for several days.
Several Utah universities increased security and police presence on their campuses, including the University of Utah, Brigham Young University, and Southern Utah University.
Who were the two suspects detained by police?
The first man detained within minutes of the murder was George Zinn. Footage on social media showed him being handcuffed and taken away by police. Videos showed shocked bystanders jeering at the man as he was escorted. He was widely labeled as the shooter on social media.
Shortly thereafter, Zinn was released and is no longer a suspect. The Utah DPS said the UVU police charged him with obstruction.
Several hours after the murder, FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest of a suspect.
“The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody. Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi,” Patel said in a post on X.
The man was identified by the Utah DPS as Zachariah Qureshi. He was quickly released after questioning by the police and is no longer a suspect.
CHARLIE KIRK DEAD AFTER BEING SHOT AT UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITY EVENT
Patel announced an hour and a half later that the suspect had been released “after an interrogation by law enforcement.
“Our investigation continues and we will continue to release information in interest of transparency,” he added.
Kaelan Deese contributed to this reporting.