Family and friends of the 22-year-old man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk say his political views have become increasingly left-wing in recent years, as he spent a lot of time in the “dark corners of the Internet“. Utah Governor Spencer Cox said last night, quoted by the Associated Press, BTA reports.
Investigators are still gathering information about suspect Tyler Robinson and are not yet ready to talk about his potential motive. However, Cox indicated that Robinson, who refuses to cooperate with law enforcement, did not like Kirk and may have been “radicalized“ online.
Charlie Kirk is the founder of Turning Point USA, an organization that aims to bring more young conservative evangelicals into politics, and was a confidant of President Donald Trump. The 31-year-old activist rose to fame in part through his speaking tours. He was shot and killed Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University.
“There was clearly a left-wing ideology,” Cox said on NBC's Meet the Press, citing interviews with Robinson's family and acquaintances. “His friends have confirmed that there was a kind of deep, dark web, Reddit culture and other dark places on the internet where this guy delved,” he added.
The governor also said that anti-fascist messages and language from internet culture were found on the ammunition used to kill Kirk. According to forensic documents show that one of the cartridges had the words "Hey, fascist! This is for you!" written on it.
Republican Cox, who has called on supporters of both major American parties to tone down their rhetoric since the attack, stressed: "I'm really neutral on this issue. If this was a radicalized MAGA supporter, I would say the same thing."
He said in several interviews last night that investigators were still trying to determine a motive for the attack on Kirk. More information is expected to come to light after Robinson appears in court tomorrow.