Details about DNA evidence were revealed in the pre-trial hearing of Tyler Robinson, the prime suspect in the takedown of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Additionally, the court was shown footage of the 23-year-old suspect strolling around the Utah Valley University campus, eating a meal from Chick-fil-A, and talking to Kirk’s staff before the Turning Point USA co-founder was fatally struck in the neck on September 10, 2025.
Details about DNA evidence were revealed in the pre-trial hearing of Tyler Robinson
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Trigger warning: this article contains graphic details that may be distressing to some.
Tyler Robinson’s pre-trial is underway to determine whether there is enough evidence to take him to trial for the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Prosecutors are seeking the de*th penalty, and Robinson has yet to enter a plea in the case.
Details about a screwdriver left on the rooftop of a campus building, as well as a towel, found wrapped around a rifle found in a wooded area nearby, were presented during the pre-trial on Tuesday.
Image credits: Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images
FBI analyst Amanda Bakker said both the towel and screwdriver contained DNA from two sources and could possibly be a match to Robinson and Lance Twiggs, his transgender roommate and lover.
95 percent of the contributing genetic material came from one source and 5 percent came from another, Bakker said during her testimony.
She noted that “Robinson’s DNA profile aligned better with the 95 percent contributor.”
Bakker said that apart from Robinson or Twiggs, no other individual’s DNA was identified as a possible contributor.
However, while being cross-examined by Robinson’s legal team, Bakker said that the DNA match was not definitive.
This, nevertheless, did not exclude Robinson as a “possible contributor.”
“She can’t match Mr. Robinson to the questioned samples,” defense attorney Michael Burt declared as Robinson’s team cast doubt on Bakker’s findings.
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Utah State Bureau of Investigation sergeant Jennifer Faumuina, who also oversaw the physical evidence collected in the case, said there was a screwdriver found on the campus’s Losee Center, where Robinson is alleged to have pulled the trigger on Kirk.
Faumuina also testified that DNA found on the towel matched two people; one was definitely Twiggs, and the other one was extremely likely to be from Robinson.
New video footage was also presented this week, showing Robinson’s alleged movements prior to the assassination.
The suspect was seen on campus hours before the attack, strolling around and buying a meal at a campus Chick-fil-A.
He also allegedly spoke to staff members of Turning Point USA, the organization that Kirk co-founded.
Image credits: Trent Nelson-Pool/Getty Images
David Hull, Utah’s state Bureau of Investigation lead investigator on the case, testified that Robinson left the campus at some point and returned about 90 minutes before Kirk was struck while addressing a crowd.
The suspect was in different clothes and seemed to be limping when he returned.
Footage captured the sniper making his way to the rooftop of Losee Building.
He was “crouching down and then crawling to the corner of the building,” Hull said.
A rifle was fired at around 12:20 p.m., after which the same man was seen running across the rooftop.
He was captured dropping an unknown object in his hands as he made his way off campus.
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Hull also testified that Robinson allegedly returned to the campus when investigators began searching for the suspect and had a brief interaction with an officer.
The officer found him suspicious and noted down the license plate of the grey Dodge Challenger he was driving.
Image credits: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
At the time of Kirk’s assassination, Robinson and Twiggs shared an apartment in St. George. And the former had admitted to committing the crime in a text message to the latter.
Twiggs also allegedly found a note under the keyboard of the prime suspect’s computer that said, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I’m going to take it.”
The roommate texted Robinson asking whether he was the rooftop sniper.
“I am, I’m sorry,” he replied, as per court documents.
The hearing is expected to end on Friday, with Judge Tony Graf determining whether the prosecution has presented sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.
“This is America. The fact is always twisted,” one commented online
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