Charlie Kirk murder suspect Tyler Robinson claims ‘doppelganger’ shot the leader to ‘get me in trouble'

A day after Tyler Robinson, the suspect in the shooting of Charlie Kirk, was taken into custody, a startling twist emerged. Robinson allegedly admitted to killing Kirk just hours after the fatal incident at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. However, the confession came with a shocking claim — it wasn’t actually him, but his “doppelganger”.

On Saturday, The New York Times published a report analysing Tyler Robinson’s Discord activity. According to the report, Robinson logged onto Discord just hours after Wednesday afternoon’s shooting and claimed that it was his “doppelganger” who shot and killed Charlie Kirk. The alleged motive, he said, was that the doppelganger wanted to get him “in trouble.”

According to NYT, Tyler Robinson’s friends on the Discord chat saw the semblance between him and the photo of the suspect the FBI released. Then one of the members of the Discord chat group - reportedly an acquaintance of Robinson - asked him “wya” (where you at?) The message ended with a skull emoji.

It was in reply to this message that Robinson wrote his “doppelganger” fatally shot Charlie Kirk in Orem.

What followed was a striking twist of irony. In a group chat, Robinson and others discussed the idea of framing him as the shooter—citing his resemblance to the suspect—in order to claim the $1,00,000 reward. Robinson even chimed in, saying he was willing to go along with the plan as long as he received a share of the money.

The conversation soon took a darker turn. One participant recalled the arrest of Luigi Mangione, who gunned down the UnitedHealthcare CEO and was later apprehended at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania. The user warned, “Whatever you do, don’t go to a McDonald’s anytime soon.”

To this, Robinson responded chillingly: “Better also get rid of the manifesto and exact copy rifle I have lying around.”

Tyler Robinson investigation update

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is now scrutinising Robinson’s motives as they move toward filing charges ahead of his scheduled court appearance later this month. As part of the inquiry, FBI agents on Saturday questioned Robinson’s roommates, who live with him in a three-bedroom apartment in Saint George, Utah.