Suspect Apprehended in Shooting of Conservative Activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University
OREM, utah – Law enforcement officials have taken a suspect into custody following wednesday’s shooting of Charlie Kirk, a prominent conservative activist, during an event at Utah Valley University (UVU). The arrest brings a measure of relief to the campus community and those who witnessed the attack.
The shooting occurred while Kirk was answering questions from the audience about gun violence. Witnesses reported seeing Kirk reach for his neck as blood emerged from a wound on the left side. the incident prompted an immediate campus lockdown and a two-day search for the shooter, which concluded with an arrest announced Friday.
“There’s been this like really heavy, dark weight pressed over my heart and soul for the last two days, and waking up to the news of the shooter being captured today, it is a great thing,” said Creighton Baird, an attendee who was near the stage. He described being haunted by the images he witnessed.
Utah Valley University is preparing to resume classes Wednesday with “increased security on campus.” Students and attendees will be able to retrieve belongings left at the courtyard where the shooting took place early next week, according to the university.
the shooting drew condemnation from across the political spectrum, including from former President Donald Trump, who stated he would award Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Trump, along with Vice president JD Vance and his wife, Usha, oversaw the transport of Kirk’s casket to his home state of Arizona aboard Air Force Two on Thursday.
“He wanted to help young people, and he didn’t deserve this,” Trump said Friday. “He was really a good person.”
