Patel addresses post about “subject” in Kirk shooting
The Senate Judiciary Committee asked FBI director Kash Patel on Tuesday about his decision to announce on X — hours after Kirk was killed — that “the subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody.”
The statement sparked confusion, since law enforcement on the ground in Utah said no suspect had been apprehended. Patel later issued a follow-up post saying the subject had been released.
Patel stood by the comments on Tuesday, saying that the FBI doesn’t only identify “suspects” but also interviews and eliminates “subjects” in investigations.
“What we had at the time was a subject in custody in relation to this investigation,” Patel said. “So in my commitment to work with the public to help identify subjects and suspects, I put that information out. And then when we interviewed him, I put out the results of that. And could I have been more careful in my verbiage and included ‘a subject’ instead of ‘subject?’ Sure.”
When Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont said Patel’s handling of the situation “was a mistake,” the FBI director disagreed.
“I don’t see it as a mistake,” Patel said. “I see it as something, working with the public to identify that there was a subject in custody.”
Patel says FBI is investigating Discord chat
FBI director Kash Patel faced questions about the investigation in Kirk’s killing while testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.
Patel told Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri that the FBI is looking into a group chat on the messaging platform Discord that included the suspect in Kirk’s killing. Patel said the FBI is working to preserve the contents of the chat.
“Unfortunately, it has been leaked that there was a Discord chat … that the suspect participated in. So what we’re doing, we’ve already done is sort of the legal process, not just on Discord, so that the information we gathered is sustained and held in an evidentiary posture that we could use in prosecution should we decide to do so,” he said. “And we’re also going to be investigating anyone and everyone involved in that Discord chat.”
Patel said there were a “lot more” than 20 users involved in the chat.
Suspect appeared to confess to killing on Discord, company says
Tyler Robinson appeared to take responsibility for shooting Charlie Kirk in messages sent to friends on the chat platform Discord, a company spokesperson said.
“Hey guys, I have bad news for you all,” read a message from an account that allegedly belonged to Robinson, according to the spokesperson and a law enforcement source. “It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this.”
Members of the chat also recognized Robinson in images released by the FBI and asked if he was the shooter, according to the law enforcement source. Robinson did not seem to refute the question. In one exchange, the sources said a friend appeared to tease Robinson by quipping that he should avoid McDonald’s — where accused UnitedHealthcare CEO shooter Luigi Mangione was caught with a manifesto, a gun and a fake ID late last year.
The account appearing to belong to Robinson responded: “Better also get rid of this manifesto and exact copy rifle I have lying around.”
The messages, first reported by the Washington Post, were sent toward the end of the manhunt that ended with Robinson in custody late Thursday, Sept. 11.
Read more here.
Suspect held in special housing unit of Utah jail
Tyler Robinson is being held under special watch in a Utah jail, authorities said over the weekend.
Robinson “will remain on a special watch status until cleared by mental health, which may take several days,” the Utah County Sheriff said in a statement Sunday.
“This is done for various reasons ranging from: the types of crimes you’re booked on, behavioral issues, violent behavior, and/or suicidal comments made during the arrest,” the sheriff’s statement said. “The special housing unit has more close supervision as does our special watch.”
The sheriff noted that he hadn’t been made aware of any suicidal concerns or comments regarding Robinson.
Robinson is accused of aggravated murder, which could see him face the death penalty, life in prison without parole, or 25 years to life in prison with parole. He is also accused of obstruction of justice, which carries a penalty of up to 15 years in jail, and felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, which carries a penalty of five years to life in prison, according to the Utah County Attorney’s office.
Read more here.
