Utah Governor Spencer Cox attended a press conference after our right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, a right-wing activist of US President Donald Trump’s ally, was fatally shot at an event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah on September 10, 2025.
Jim Urquhart | Reuters
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox on Sunday said the man arrested in connection with the murder of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk “is not cooperating” with authorities a few days after he was booked to the Utah County Jail.
Cox said the suspect, identified as Tyler Robinson on ABC News “this week,” was not cooperating with “all people around him.”
The governor’s comments came after the 22-year-old was arrested Friday after more than 30 hours of manhunt and finally concluded when a family friend of the suspect contacted authorities.
Kirk’s fatal shooting that occurred while he spoke at a rally at Utah Valley University rattles the country.
“If your American views aren’t shaking right now, there’s something wrong with you,” Cox said on CNN’s “An Alliance State.”
“This is a direct attack on America,” he continued.
Investigators still stitch together the motives for the murder. Cox said the suspects frequently participated in games and internet culture.
“Friends have seen the deep, dark internet, Reddit culture that this person was deeply in and the other dark places that they were deep,” Cox said of NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“You saw it in the casing. I had no idea what those inscriptions mean, but they are certainly memeizations that are happening in our society today.”
Many casings found on rifles believed to be used in the shooting had messages engraved with something that said, “Hey fascist! Catch!”
The governor also confirmed the New York Times report on Sunday that Robinson had communicated about discrepancies in messaging platforms after filming.
“What we can see is that those conversations were definitely happening and they didn’t believe it was actually him,” he told ABC News.
“It was a joke until he knew it until he admitted he was actually him,” he continued.
With many questions remaining about the horrifying murder, Cox said official charges of the case are expected to be filed Tuesday.
“We’re going to interview all kinds of people, everyone who knows him and learn more about what that motive actually is,” he said.
Cox also confirmed reports that investigators interviewed Robinson’s roommate, who has been called “romantic partners” and is transitioning from male to female.
“This partner was incredibly supportive and I didn’t know that this was happening. I’m currently working with investigators,” COX told CNN.
