The Utah State Attorney's Office today (Tuesday) filed a serious indictment against Tyler Robinson, who is accused of murdering American right-wing pro-Israel activist Charlie Kirk.
The indictment, which includes seven counts, charges Robinson with aggravated murder and additional charges for illegal possession of a weapon and obstruction of investigation.
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The prosecutor said they would seek the death penalty for Robinson.
He is accused of firing a single bullet from a sniper rifle that struck Kirk and killed him. The prosecutor said: "This is a well-planned, extremely serious crime, which has a far-reaching impact on the public's sense of security.".
According to the prosecutor, Robinson decided to take action against Kirk because he saw him as responsible for spreading hatred. He said Robinson confessed to his roommate about killing Kirk in a letter he left under his keyboard.
Robinson was not brought to the hearing but participated in it via video broadcast from the detention cell where he is being held.
Yesterday, the New York Times reported that less than a day after the murder, Robinson joined a Discord chat group and discussed with his friends the photos released by the FBI, in which the suspect was seen in the shooting. When one of them tagged him in a message and wrote "wya" - short for "where you at", along with a skull emoji, Robinson replied: "My doppelganger is trying to get me in trouble.".
The correspondence quickly turned into a series of jokes. One user wrote, "Tyler killed Charlie!", and another commented that Robinson could be turned in to win a $100,000 reward promised for information about the shooter.
The suspect did not protest, but rather played along with his friends and replied: "Only if I get a share too.".
At one point he humorously wrote: "I'm actually Charlie Kirk, I faked my death to leave political life and live the dream in Kansas.".
Meanwhile, the hunt for him continued. Robinson's father was reportedly the one who identified him in photos released by the FBI. The father confronted his son with the suspicion, extracted a confession from him, and with the help of a priest, convinced him to turn himself in.
A few hours after the chat group conversation, Robinson was arrested by security forces.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox confirmed that the suspect is remaining silent and uncooperative with investigators, but stressed that the rest of his family is assisting in the investigation. He said that the Robinson family is conservative, but the son developed very different views and became radicalized towards the left after dropping out of university.
