Right-wing activist and Chicago-area native Charlie Kirk has died after being shot while presenting at Utah Valley University Wednesday, officials said.
In a message on Truth Social, President Donald Trump said Kirk “is dead” following the shooting during a Turning Point USA event at the Utah school.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” Trump wrote. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
Turning Point USA, the conservative activist group Kirk founded, also confirmed Kirk’s death.
“It is with a heavy heart that we confirm that Charles James Kirk has been murdered by a gun shot that took place during Turning Point USA’s ‘The American Comeback Tour’ campus event at Utah Valley University on September 10th, 2025,” the group wrote. “May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior who suffered and died for Charlie. We ask that everyone keep his family and loved ones in your prayers. We ask that you please respect their privacy and dignity in this time.”
A spokesperson for Utah Valley University said Kirk was about 20 minutes into a presentation when shots were fired from a nearby building. Video footage purportedly of the moment the shooting took place showed Kirk discussing mass shootings with an audience member just as a single gunshot was fired.
Ellen Treanor, the associate vice president of strategic and communication management at the university, said Kirk was believed to have been “hit” and was “taken with his security team away from the premises.”
The courtyard where the event was being held was ultimately cleared, Treanor said.
Sen. Mike Lee said he was “tracking the situation” and asked followers on X to “join me in praying for Charlie Kirk and the students gathered there.”
The university told NBC News no other injuries were immediately reported.
An alert from the school noted “a single shot was fired on campus toward a visiting speaker.”
“Police are investigating now, suspect in custody,” the alert stated as the university closed its campus and canceled classes “until further notice,” telling students to “leave campus immediately.”
Treanor later said, however, that a suspect was not in custody, but just before 5:30 p.m., FBI Director Kash Patel announced on X that the alleged shooter “is now in custody.”
“The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody. Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi,” the message read.
Then, around 7 p.m., Patel announced the suspect was released after an interrogation.
Kirk, a suburban Chicago native and supporter of President Donald Trump, is the founder and executive director of Turning Point USA. He is a graduate of Wheeling High School and previously attended Harper College.
Vice President JD Vance called him a “genuinely good guy and a young father.”
Kirk was scheduled to appear at the university for a so-called “The American Comeback Tour,” which was “hosted by the TPUSA chapter at Utah Valley.”
“We heard a big, loud shot,” witness Justin Hickens told NBC News. “I saw a bunch of blood come out of Charlie. I saw his body … kind of everybody dropped to the ground. And luckily, there were no other bullets sprayed into the crowd, because nobody was really able to go anywhere. It was just like a big, you know, open pavilion, amphitheater, outdoor venue. And you know, lots of screaming, lots of yelling, you know, lots of bodies on top of each other.”
“I saw a lot of blood leave his body instantly. … It’s not like we heard a shot and we saw him fall to the ground,” Hickens added. “We saw a lot of blood leave his body instantly, instantly upon impact.”
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said “those responsible will be held fully accountable.”
“I am being briefed by law enforcement following the violence directed at Charlie Kirk during his visit to Utah Valley University today,” Cox wrote on X. “We will continue to share updates. Those responsible will be held fully accountable. Violence has no place in our public life. Americans of every political persuasion must unite in condemning this act. Our prayers are with Charlie, his family, and all those affected.”
Speaking at an unrelated event, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker expressed “my sympathy to Charlie Kirk’s family and to Charlie Kirk.”
“I will say that political violence unfortunately has been ratcheting up in this country. We saw the shootings, the killings in Minnesota, we’ve seen other political violence occur in other states and I would just say it’s got to stop,” Pritzker said.
This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
Want more insights? Join Working Title - our career elevating newsletter and get the future of work delivered weekly.
