Suspect in Charlie Kirk Killing Expressed Regret

Roommate Says

Report By Y-Trendz

Provo, Utah, July 9, 2026 — The former roommate of Tyler Robinson, the man accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, told prosecutors that Robinson expressed regret the day

after the killing and had planned to turn himself in to police, according to a video interview played in court on Thursday.

The recorded interview with Robinson's former roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, was presented as part of a week-long preliminary hearing in which prosecutors are trying to convince a Utah judge they have enough evidence to send Robinson to trial. State District Judge Tony F. Graf Jr. will ultimately decide whether the case proceeds.

"He Wishes He Hadn't Done It"

According to Twiggs, Robinson returned to the three-bedroom townhouse the two shared in St. George, Utah — roughly a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Utah Valley University — on the morning of September 11, 2025, the day after Kirk was shot and killed in front of a crowd of thousands during a campus debate event. Twiggs told investigators that when he asked Robinson in person whether he was responsible, Robinson confirmed it, became emotional, and indicated he regretted his actions. Twiggs said Robinson then paced around the apartment, seemingly trying to keep himself occupied, before eventually saying he intended to speak with his parents or surrender to law enforcement.

Robinson did not reach out to Twiggs directly until later that night, according to testimony. Prosecutors displayed a text exchange between the two beginning around 11 p.m. on the night of the shooting, in which Twiggs asked Robinson to check under his keyboard — where investigators say they later found a handwritten note reading that Robinson had the opportunity to target Kirk and intended to take it. When Twiggs asked Robinson directly whether he was responsible, Robinson reportedly confirmed it and apologized. In a separate exchange, when asked why he did it, Robinson said he had reached a breaking point over what he described as Kirk's hateful rhetoric, adding that certain forms of hatred could not be resolved through dialogue.

Investigators also testified that Robinson had asked Twiggs about a month before the shooting to borrow a rotary tool, which prosecutors allege was used to engrave messages onto bullets. A photo shown in court depicted the suspected murder weapon — a bolt-action rifle — wrapped in a towel, which investigators said they recovered from a wooded area near the amphitheater where Kirk was shot. The weapon reportedly contained one spent round and three unspent rounds, each engraved with a different message.

Robinson later texted Twiggs that he planned to surrender voluntarily, noting that a neighbor worked as a sheriff's deputy and that he hoped to keep the situation low-key. Investigators testified that Robinson turned himself in to police around 9 p.m. that evening.

Legal Stakes and Family Statement

Robinson, 23, who was studying to become an electrician at the time of the shooting, faces seven criminal charges, including aggravated murder. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, and he has not yet entered a plea. Twiggs, who agreed to be interviewed by police and prosecutors in April in lieu of testifying live at the hearing, was granted immunity for his cooperation.

Robinson's defense attorneys had fought to keep Twiggs' statements out of the public record, arguing prosecutors would frame them as a confession and undermine Robinson's right to a fair trial. Judge Graf ultimately allowed portions of the interview to be played in court, though some material was redacted, and the courtroom livestream's audio was muted at certain points to avoid material the judge deemed potentially prejudicial to future jurors. Attorneys representing Kirk's family, along with media representatives, had pushed for the evidence to be made public, arguing transparency was essential to public trust in the judicial process.

Kirk's family released a statement ahead of the hearing thanking supporters for their continued kindness following the 31-year-old activist's death, describing him as a devoted husband, father, son and brother. Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, was present at Thursday's proceedings, though it was not immediately confirmed whether she was in the courtroom during the playback of Twiggs' interview.

The preliminary hearing was scheduled to conclude Friday, with both prosecution and defense expected to submit written arguments ahead of a further hearing in September. Defense attorneys have suggested during the proceedings that investigators did not adequately explore the possibility that someone else may have been involved in the killing, an assertion prosecutors dispute.

Kirk, a co-founder of Turning Point USA and a prominent ally of President Donald Trump, was killed on September 10, 2025, in an attack that drew national attention amid heightened concern over political violence in the United States.