America’s current most-wanted mystery man finally has a face, albeit a blurry one.
The FBI has released photos and clips of the rooftop sniper, who remains missing after fatally shooting Charlie Kirk in the middle of a campus event at Utah Valley University.
One video captured the assailant fleeing within moments of gunning down the conservative activist. His rifle was also found near the campus.
Some reports also claimed his ammunition was engraved with messages.
The FBI released photos and videos as the hunt for Charlie Kirk’s assassin continues
Trigger warning: this article contains details that may be distressing to some.
The hunt for Charlie Kirk’s assassin continues more than a day after the Turning Point USA co-founder was fatally shot.
Charlie had just kick-started his “The American Comeback Tour” and was conducting his first stop at Utah Valley University when the harrowing incident unfolded on Wednesday, September 10.
The influential conservative activist was answering questions about mass shootings in the US when a bullet ripped through his neck.
The “college age” suspect shot him from the roof of a campus building before fleeing the area, officials believe.
The “college age” suspect was captured dashing across a rooftop building after fatally striking the conservative activist
Photos of the unidentified suspect captured him wearing sunglasses, a baseball cap, and a long-sleeved shirt with an American flag on it.
He “appears to be of college age” and “blended in well with the college institution” during Charlie’s campus event, said Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason.
Video footage captured the sniper dashing across the building’s rooftop and jumping down to the ground.
“As he did that, he left some palm impressions. There were some smudges, some places we were looking to collect DNA,” Beau said.
The suspect also left behind a Converse shoe imprint.
The assailant left his “high-powered bolt action rifle” in a wooded area close to the campus
As more than 3,000 event attendees ran for cover, the suspect fled the university and left a “high-powered bolt action rifle” somewhere close to the campus.
The .30-06 caliber bolt-action rifle was found wrapped in a towel with a spent cartridge remaining in the chamber.
Three unused bullets were still in the magazine.
“We have recovered what we believe is the weapon that was used in yesterday’s shooting. It is a high-powered bolt action rifle,” FBI agent Robert Bohls said.
Robert said they recovered a “footwear impression, a palm print, and forearm imprints” from the scene but confirmed the shooter was not hiding in the wooded area where the rifle was found.
“We are exhausting every resource to find him, and we will do so,” officials said
“We walked through those woods and secured it. As to the community, I can tell you that this was a targeted event. We don’t believe the community is at risk,” Robert said.
“However, we are exhausting every resource to find him, and we will do so,” he added.
Image credits: FBI – Federal Bureau of Investigation/YouTube
Some reports claimed the ammunition found inside the rifle had messages engraved on them.
Citing a law enforcement bulletin and a source familiar with the case investigation, the Wall Street Journal reported that the engravings were messages of transgender and liberal ideology.
However, a senior law enforcement official told the New York Times on Thursday that preliminary reports about the ammunition engravings “might turn out to have been misread or misinterpreted.”
Some reports claimed there were messages engraved on the ammunition found in the rifle
The FBI has offered a cash reward to anyone offering information that could lead to the suspect’s arrest.
“The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the identification and arrest of the individual(s) responsible for the m****r of Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025, at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah,” the agency wrote on social media.
The FBI has so far received a whopping 7,000 tips in connection with the rooftop sniper, which is the most since the Boston Marathon Bombing in 2013.
“He’s an animal, total animal, and hopefully they’ll have him, and they’ll get him,” the US president said about the assassin while speaking to reporters on Thursday.
🚨BREAKING: Security camera footage showing the alleged Charlie Kirk assassin just minutes before he killed Charlie has been released from a homeowner
It’s unclear why he is walking with a limp. It could be related to concealing the firearm
FIND HIM! #CharlieKirkshot pic.twitter.com/Y1PLkWoBf8
— Bawaal Bulletin (@BawaalBulletin) September 12, 2025
Image credits: BawaalBulletin
Utah’s Gov. Spencer Cox warned the public of the “tremendous amounts of disinformation” on social media surrounding the sniper’s identity.
“What we’re seeing is, our adversaries want violence. We have bots from Russia, China, all over the world, that are trying to instill disinformation and encourage violence,” he said during a Thursday press conference.
“I would encourage you to ignore those, to turn off those streams, and to spend a little more time with our families,” he added.
The shooter “knows exactly where to run and hide,” one netizen commented online
