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AMERICANALMANAC (Charles McAdams) - Evidence against Tyler Robinson in Charlie Kirk killing: confessions, engravings, and a trail of texts Thu Sep 10 18:22:09 2026

One year after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University, the evidence prosecutors have assembled against the man charged with his murder paints a picture of premeditation, political hostility, and a failed attempt to cover his tracks. Kirk, 31, was struck in the neck by a single.30-06 caliber bullet on […] The post Evidence against Tyler Robinson in Charlie Kirk killing: confessions, engravings, and a trail of texts appeared first on American Almanac .

One year after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University, the evidence prosecutors have assembled against the man charged with his murder paints a picture of premeditation, political hostility, and a failed attempt to cover his tracks. Kirk, 31, was struck in the neck by a single.30-06 caliber bullet on September 10, 2025, while debating in front of thousands at the Orem, Utah, campus. He died from the wound. Two days later, authorities arrested Tyler Robinson, then 22, after a manhunt that included the release of surveillance footage showing a suspect walking across campus with an apparent limp. Robinson, now 23, has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges, including aggravated murder creating a risk of death to others, a charge that carries the death penalty. A Utah district judge ruled earlier this month that Robinson will stand trial, rejecting defense attorneys' bid to strip the aggravated murder count. Judge Tony Graf approved the charge based on the positions of nearby witnesses close to where Kirk was killed. Robinson is next due in court October 23, when Graf is expected to set a trial date. A handwritten note, an auto-text, and a confession before midnight Prosecutors say Robinson left a handwritten note under a keyboard at the St. George, Utah, home he shared with his roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, before driving to UVU on the morning of September 10. Robinson allegedly told Twiggs he had to work a long shift that day. At 11 p.m. that night, Robinson sent Twiggs an automated text directing him to look under the keyboard. What Twiggs found, as the Daily Mail detailed in a one-year retrospective, was a confession note addressed to Twiggs by the name "Luna": "Luna, If you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry. I left the house this morning on a mission and sent an auto-text. I'm likely dead or facing a lengthy prison sentence." Robinson allegedly wrote that he "had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it... I wish we could have lived in a world where this was not necessary." Twiggs testified at pre-trial hearings in July that Robinson came home that night, admitted to the shooting in person, cried, and said he "wished he hadn't done it." Twiggs has not been charged with any crime in connection with Kirk's death. Prosecutors say Twiggs cooperated with investigators, provided text messages, and offered DNA for testing. Text messages show Robinson tracked the manhunt in real time Court filings presented at the pre-trial hearings revealed a text exchange between Robinson and Twiggs in the hours after the shooting. When Twiggs texted Robinson, "What? You're joking right?... You weren't the one who did it right?", Robinson allegedly responded simply: "I am, I'm sorry." But Robinson did not immediately surrender. Instead, prosecutors say, he monitored the police response and tried to retrieve the weapon he had allegedly stashed. In one text to Twiggs, Robinson wrote: "I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down. It's quiet, almost enough to get but, there's one vehicle lingering." In another, he wrote: "If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence. Going to attempt to retrieve it again, hopefully they have moved on. I haven't seen anything in the news about them finding it. Will update you by midnight." Authorities ultimately recovered the rifle, identified as Robinson's grandfather's Mauser Model 98 bolt-action rifle, in a wooded area near the shooting scene. Prosecutors allege Robinson smuggled the weapon onto campus by stuffing it down his pants leg, which they say explains the limp visible in surveillance footage shown at the hearing . He allegedly fired from the rooftop of the Losee Center building on the UVU campus. Robinson confessed in a Discord chat, then told his father he'd rather die than surrender The alleged confessions did not stop with Twiggs. Prosecutors presented messages from a Discord group chat in which Robinson allegedly wrote: "Hey guys, I have bad news for you all. it was me at UVU yesterday. I'm sorry for all of this. I'm surrendering through a sheriff friend in a few moments." In another Discord message, Robinson allegedly insisted: "It was me. Look at the pictures from the surveillance footage. It was me. I'm serious." Robinson's father, Matt Robinson, a construction worker, recognized his son in the surveillance images authorities released during the 48-hour manhunt. He texted Tyler: "Tyler, is this you? This looks like you." Matt Robinson ultimately convinced his son to turn himself in, but not before Tyler allegedly told his father he would "rather kill myself than turn myself in." When Twiggs asked Robinson how long he had been planning the shooting, Robinson allegedly replied: "A bit over a week, I believe." Bullet casings carried political messages aimed at Kirk Among the most striking evidence prosecutors presented were the engravings Robinson allegedly carved into the bullet casings. Investigators described four inscriptions: "Hey fascist! Catch!" was one. Another referenced the Italian anti-fascist song "Bella Ciao." A third read "notices bulge OwO", internet slang. The fourth: "If you are reading this, you are gay." DNA evidence linked both Robinson and Twiggs to key items in the case, prosecutors said, though Twiggs has maintained cooperation and faces no charges. The engravings, combined with Robinson's alleged confession note, point to a politically motivated act. Robinson wrote that he wished the shooting had not been "necessary", framing Kirk's death as something more than personal. Prosecutors at the pre-trial hearings also cited evidence that Robinson had expressed hostility toward Kirk's rhetoric. The Washington Examiner reported that the suspected gunman stated he killed Kirk because Kirk "spreads too much hate." Liberal commentators spread false claims about Robinson's ideology Despite the evidence pointing to leftist political motivation, some prominent liberal voices worked to muddy the picture. The Washington Free Beacon documented how Substack writer Heather Cox Richardson, who has 2.7 million subscribers, told her audience that Robinson "was not someone on the left" and had "embraced the far right", a claim that contradicted prosecutors' evidence. Text messages released by prosecutors showed Robinson wrote that he had "enough of Kirk's hatred," and Robinson's own mother confirmed he had "started to lean more to the left" and become "more pro-gay and more trans-rights oriented." Richardson has not corrected her initial characterization. She later told readers Robinson's motive "remains unclear" and said on a podcast, "we just don't know" about his motivation. The evidence presented at the pre-trial hearings tells a different story. That pattern, dismissing or distorting the political dimensions of Kirk's killing, stands in contrast to the reaction from conservative commentators who faced their own reckoning when hearing evidence contradicted earlier speculation about the case. UVU closes campus for the anniversary as students protest the memorial Utah Valley University announced it will close its campus on September 10 to mark the one-year anniversary. Turning Point USA, the organization Kirk founded, plans to hold a memorial event at UVU's UCCU Center at 6:30 p.m. Mountain Time that evening. UVU's new president, Dr. Jon Anderson, told Fox News that the university remains committed to open debate, saying, "We don't jump in the fray, but we host the fray." Anderson has a personal connection to the tragedy: his two daughters and son-in-law were roughly 10 yards from Kirk when he was shot. Not everyone on campus supports the memorial. More than 600 students signed an open letter condemning the university's decision to shut down campus for the event, with UVU's Students for a Democratic Society chapter calling it a "far-right political event." The letter accused Anderson of aligning himself "with the interests of Charlie Kirk's openly racist and antagonistic organization," Just the News reported . A man was shot and killed on their campus for his political beliefs, and 600 students used the anniversary to attack his memory. The university also announced an independent external review of campus security and plans to build a permanent memorial to Kirk. Robinson sits in a Utah jail cell, having pleaded not guilty to all seven counts. The death penalty remains on the table. Judge Graf is expected to set a trial date at the October 23 hearing. The confessions, the texts, the engravings, and the surveillance footage will all be waiting. Charlie Kirk went to a college campus to debate ideas. Tyler Robinson, if prosecutors are right, answered with a rifle. That is the reality a jury will now weigh, and the country should not look away. The post Evidence against Tyler Robinson in Charlie Kirk killing: confessions, engravings, and a trail of texts appeared first on American Almanac .