Weapon recovered as manhunt continues in Kirk assassination investigation

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(The Center Square) – The weapon believed to have been used in the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has been recovered; however, a manhunt remains ongoing for the suspected shooter.

Authorities held a briefing Thursday morning indicating that investigators recovered a “high-powered bolt action rifle” in a wooded area near the shooting site. Investigators say the “suspect blended in well with a college institution,” believing the suspect to be college aged. They say they have “images of the suspect.”

Investigators also said they made progress overnight in tracking the movements of the suspect before and after the shooting.

“We were able to track the movements of the shooter; starting at 11:52 a.m. the subject arrived on campus, shortly away from campus. We have tracked his movements onto the campus, through the stairwells up to the roof, across the roof to a shooting location. After the shooting, we were able to track his movements as he moved to the other side of the building, jumped off of the building and fled off of the campus and into a neighborhood,” according to the commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, Beau Mason.

The suspected rifle used in the shooting is being sent to an FBI laboratory for analysis. In addition to the recovered weapon, investigators say they collected footwear impressions, a palm print and forearm imprints; however, they didn’t indicate where they were collected.

Ammunition found inside the rifle contained engraved messages of transgender and antifascist ideology, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Kirk was shot in the neck shortly before 12:30 p.m. MDT Wednesday during a campus event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. About 3,000 people were in attendance, and the shooting was captured by multiple spectators and posted to social media.

Two individuals were briefly detained and questioned in relation to the shooting, but were later released, according to FBI Director Kash Patel.

Videos circulating show a shadowy figure, appearing to be dressed in black clothing, who can be seen on a rooftop approximately 200 yards from where Kirk was speaking. The figure can be seen running shortly after the shooting.

The FBI, along with the Utah Department of Public Safety, is leading the investigation.

This is a developing story.