Far-Right Political Activist Charlie Kirk Shot at Utah Rally, Gun Recovered

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Charlie Kirk, a far-right political activist, was shot at a rally at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, and officials are still conducting a massive manhunt to search for the suspect.

Charlie Kirk was a prominent conservative political activist who supported various far-right and even extremist ideas, but had great success in his field. In 2012, at the age of just 19, Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a major organization that supports conservative politics on high school and college campuses, cementing his arrival into US politics, and he quickly became a close ally of current US President Donald Trump.

However, the 31-year-old was shot at a rally in Orem, Utah on Wednesday as part of a targeted assassination. Kirk had been giving a speech at an open amphitheater in the center of the campus as part of his "American Comeback" tour, which was planned to go on to visit 14 other universities as part of his program. At least 3,000 people were attending the rally, which was free to enter.

Using surveillance footage from various cameras across the area, authorities found that the gunman arrived on campus approximately 30 minutes before the shooting, heading up the stairs to the roof of a nearby building. This roof had a direct shot at Kirk, and extremely graphic videos posted on social media showed the gunman firing a supersonic bullet towards his neck at around 12:20 pm, instantly killing him.

Ironically, the political activist was killed just seconds after he was asked a question about mass shootings in the United States. Nevertheless, the tragic incident sparked fear and concern among the people attending the rally, but several managed to spot the gunman sprinting across the roof of a nearby building.

Additional surveillance footage released by the FBI showed the gunman jumping off the edge of the building and sprinting into a small forest, and a manhunt for the culprit has already begun.

While a suspect was taken in for questioning on the day of the shooting, he was later released. However, authorities managed to recover the high-powered bolt-action rifle used in the shooting, which had various political messages written on it. Officials are currently analyzing the prints on the gun to try to discover the gunman's identity.

The FBI has offered up to $100,000 for anyone with information on the shooter, who they suspect is around college age. They have also released several other photos of who they believe to be the gunman in an attempt to get someone to turn him in.

Meanwhile, comments mourning Charlie Kirk have been rapidly pouring in from politicians and citizens – both left-wing and right-wing – for days. Yesterday, his body was carried in a casket by Vice President JD Vance, his wife, Usha Vance, and his family members to Phoenix, Arizona aboard Air Force Two. While Kirk was born in Illinois, his lifelong project, Turning Point USA, is headquartered in Phoenix.

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