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Witness Justin Hickens told NBC News: “We heard a big loud shot. I saw a bunch of blood come out of Charlie. I saw his body kind of kick back and go limp, and everybody dropped to the ground.”

Trump was the first to confirm Kirk’s death, in a post on social media. “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” he wrote on Truth Social. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.”

Later, Trump delivered a video message to the nation in which he praised Kirk as a patriot and a man of deep faith who devoted his life to open debate and the country he loved.

“He fought for liberty, democracy, justice and the American people. He’s a martyr for truth and freedom, and there has never been anyone who was so respected by youth,” Trump said.

“This is a dark moment for America … It’s long past time for all Americans and the media to confront the fact that violence and murder are the tragic consequence of demonising those with whom you disagree day after day, year after year in the most hateful and despicable way possible.

“Charlie was the best of America, and the monster who attacked him was attacking our whole country. An assassin tried to silence him with a bullet, but he failed because together we will ensure that his voice, his message and his legacy will live on for countless generations to come.”

Authorities were holding a press conference about 4.30pm Utah time when Patel first said a person of interest had been taken into custody.

The revelation confused the assembled media. Utah Governor Spencer Cox opened his remarks by telling the gunman, “we will find you, we will try you, and we will hold you accountable to the furthest extent of the law”, while also confirming there was a “person of interest” in custody.

“The only information we have on the suspect, the possible shooter, is taken from CCTV here on campus,” Utah public safety commissioner Beau Mason said, noting that the quality of the footage was poor but that a suspect dressed in dark clothing had been identified.

“The shot came from here on campus, from a location, potentially from the roof. [It was a] longer distance shot.”

University authorities said the shot was fired from the Losee Centre, a building a little less than 200 metres away from the courtyard where Kirk was speaking.

Video obtained by The New York Times shows a person rushing away from a spot near the edge of the building’s roof immediately after the shooting.

Cox said it was believed the gunman acted alone and that there was “no information that would lead us to believe that there is a second person involved”.

Another man arrested in the immediate aftermath of the shooting was charged with obstruction of justice and later released. With the release of the second man, the search for the gunman continues.

Armed officers were walking around the neighbourhood bordering the campus, knocking on doors and asking for information on the shooter, AP reported. Search efforts continued as night fell.

Cox characterised the shooting as a political assassination. “This is a dark day for our state; it’s a tragic day for our nation,” he said.

The political fallout of the shooting has already spilt into Washington. What was supposed to be a bipartisan moment of silence to honour Kirk on the floor of the House of Representatives quickly descended into chaos.

After the 30 seconds of silence had concluded, Republicans and Democrats began yelling at each other across the floor over far-right Colorado representative Lauren Boebert’s suggestion that a spoken prayer be read out, The New York Times reported.

Representative Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, a former conservative influencer and close ally of Kirk, stood up to blame Democrats for the shooting. Pointing angrily at the Democrats’ side of the chamber, Luna said, “You all caused this”.

The yelling escalated again, with one Democrat yelling at the Republicans to “Pass some gun laws”.

Immediately before the shooting, Kirk was taking questions from an audience member about mass shootings and gun violence, AP reported.

“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?” an audience member asked. Kirk responded: “Too many.”

The questioner followed up: “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”

“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked. Then a single shot rang out.

Also speaking at the press conference, Utah Valley University police chief Jeff Long said there were six police officers acting as security at the time of the shooting, as well as Kirk’s travelling private security team.

“We had some plainclothes police officers that were in the crowd. We train for these things,” Long said. “You think you have things covered … you try to get your bases covered. And unfortunately, today we didn’t, and because of that, we had this tragic incident.”

Long estimated that the event was attended by about 3000 people. The forum was open to members of the public, and attendees included university students, children and families. Witnesses told Fox News there were no security checks on entering the outdoor venue.

In a later post to Truth Social, Trump said he had ordered “all American Flags throughout the United States lowered to half-mast until Sunday evening at 6 P.M.”

The flag on the north lawn of the White House has already been lowered.

Vice President JD Vance, Attorney-General Pam Bondi, Utah senator Mike Lee and many other politicians called on followers to pray for Kirk. Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives Mike Schultz said violence was unacceptable and had no place in the nation’s politics.

“No disagreement, no matter how deep, justifies an attack like this. What happened is wrong, it is dangerous, and it cannot be tolerated,” he said.

Former president Joe Biden wrote on X that he and his wife, Jill, were “praying for Charlie Kirk’s family and loved ones”.

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“There is no place in our country for this kind of violence. It must end now,” he said.

In a similar message, former vice president and democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris said she was deeply disturbed by the shooting.

“Let me be clear: political violence has no place in America. I condemn this act, and we all must work together to ensure this does not lead to more violence.”

Kirk founded the conservative political advocacy group Turning Point USA, as well as a political action committee by the same name. He was an evangelical Christian, and the group conducts a lot of its work with Christian communities and students on campus.

Posting a statement to X, a Turning Point USA spokesperson said Kirk had been “murdered by a gunshot”, requesting privacy and dignity for Kirk’s family.

The university describes itself as the largest public university in Utah. The campus where Kirk was shot is in Orem, just south of Salt Lake City.

The event was the first stop on Turning Point USA’s “American Comeback Tour” of college campuses, headlined by Kirk. It featured the “Prove Me Wrong Table”, where audience members were invited to debate Kirk in a public setting.

The event had been met with divided opinions on campus. An online petition calling for university administrators to bar Kirk from appearing received nearly 1000 signatures. The university issued a statement last week citing First Amendment rights and affirming its “commitment to free speech, intellectual inquiry, and constructive dialogue”.

On September 3, Kirk posted screenshots of a series of headlines about the controversy to X, along with the caption: “What is going on in Utah?”

The university said its campus had been closed and all classes were cancelled until further notice. Students were told to leave campus immediately and follow police instructions.

During last year’s election, Kirk appeared with Trump at various rallies, and the Trump campaign outsourced a significant amount of its voter turnout work to Turning Point Action and other groups, rather than using the Republican National Committee.

As the news of Kirk’s death circulated, another shooting in the neighbouring state of Colorado was unfolding.

Three teens, all believed to be students, were in a critical condition after the shooting at the Evergreen High School about 50 kilometres west of Denver around midday on Wednesday local time.

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