Straight A student who 'confessed to his father': All we know about suspected Charlie Kirk gunman

The suspect in the shooting of Charlie Kirk is in police custody after a two-day manhunt.

The right-wing influencer, 31, was fatally shot on Wednesday afternoon while speaking at an event on Utah Valley University campus in Orem. The suspect has been named as Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old man from Utah, and the governor's office has released a photo of him in custody.

Here's what we know about him so far: How was the suspect caught? Utah Governor Spencer Cox said a member of Robinson's family reached out to a friend, who then contacted the Washington County Sheriff's Office with information that Robinson "had confessed to them or implied that he had committed the incident". NBC News reports that the family member is his father - and that the father then went to a church minister he knew, who contacted a local sheriff.

Donald Trump told Fox News "the father convinced the son," to hand himself in, adding that they then "drove into the police headquarters, and he's there now". The father realised his son may have been involved after seeing images released by the FBI.

Mr Cox said the family member told the FBI that Robinson "had become more political in recent years" and that, at a dinner prior to the shooting, he had mentioned Mr Kirk's upcoming visit to Utah Valley University. Utah's governor said they had "talked about why they didn't like him and the viewpoints that he had" and that "the family member also stated Kirk was full of hate and spreading hate".

He went on to say that messages from Tyler Robinson seen by his roommate revealed details about the alleged plot. "The content of these messages included messages affiliated with the contact 'Tyler' stating a need to retrieve a rifle from a drop point, leaving the rifle in a bush, messages related to visually watching the area where a rifle was left, and a message referring to having left the rifle wrapped in a towel," he said.

Latest updates as suspect named Mr Cox added that there was no evidence to suggest anyone else was involved, but that the investigation was ongoing. He said the suspect was taken into custody in Washington County, in southern Utah, around a three to four hour drive from Orem, where his family lived.

What else do we know about Robinson? Sky News have now verified what appear to be school records posted in 2020 by his mother which show a 4.0 average - a very high score, akin to straight As in the UK. "This boy is a genius," she added.

NBC reports that he is a third-year student in the electrical apprenticeship programme at Dixie Technical College in St George, Utah. A spokesperson for Utah Valley University said he attended the university for one semester in 2021.

A family neighbour, Kristin Schwiermann, describes Robinson as "smart," "quiet," and said he "never caused any problems." What weapon did the gunman use? Bullet casing found by investigators were engraved with messages. One read "Hey fascist! Catch!.