Charlie Kirk’s accused killer ‘said he wishes he hadn’t done it,’ roommate told Utah prosecutors

By Andi Babineau, Nicki Brown, CNN

Provo, Utah (CNN) — The former roommate of Tyler Robinson, the man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, told investigators Robinson “said he wishes he hadn’t done it” the day after the fatal shooting.

“He started crying a little bit and said he wishes he hadn’t done it, and then kept going around and just doing stuff, I think to keep himself busy or distracted or something,” the roommate, Lance Twiggs, told prosecutors in a videotaped interview shown in court Thursday, as part of a multiday hearing.

“Eventually he said that he would talk to his parents or turn himself over,” Twiggs said.

Officials testified Robinson surrendered to police later that day.

Utah prosecutors this week are displaying some of their evidence – including surveillance footage, the results of DNA testing and ballistics analysis – to try and convince a judge there’s enough to proceed to trial. State prosecutors with the Utah County Attorney’s Office rested their case in chief Thursday afternoon after calling four witnesses, each of whom were members of law enforcement involved in the investigation.

Robinson’s defense attorneys are expected to call several forensic experts.

Robinson, 23, faces charges of aggravated murder and six other counts stemming from the fatal shooting of Kirk last September. Prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty.

Robinson has not yet entered pleas.

The hearing comes about ten months after Kirk, the 31-year-old conservative firebrand and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot as he addressed a crowd of roughly 3,000 people during an event on Utah Valley University’s campus. News of his death – one example of the political violence roiling America in recent years – quickly went global, with graphic videos flooding social media and politicians on both sides of the aisle swiftly condemning the killing.

The roommate is likely a key component of the state’s case, with prosecutors alleging text messages between Twiggs and Robinson amount to a confession by the defendant that he is responsible for Kirk’s killing.

Prosecutors granted the roommate limited immunity in exchange for the videotaped statement. Twiggs’ attorney told CNN his client has “cooperated consistently with the investigation.”

Attorneys for the state, defense, the media and Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, spent much of Wednesday’s session arguing over whether the roommate’s interview could be played in court and published to the news media.

Judge Tony Graf ultimately ruled parts of the statement could not be played publicly, and those segments were redacted from the video shown in court Thursday.

Erika Kirk’s attorney asked the judge to allow the statement by Robinson’s roommate to be played in full.

“The Kirk family believes strongly that if the evidence is being admitted at this preliminary hearing, it should be made public for the world to see. No redactions,” the attorney, Jeffrey Neiman, said.

“you weren’t the one who did it right????”

Robinson and his roommate met around 2023 and started dating about two or three months after Robinson moved into their shared apartment in St. George, Utah, Twiggs told prosecutors in the interview, which was conducted and recorded in April.

The pair did not discuss politics “super consistently,” the roommate said. Twiggs never heard Robinson mention Charlie Kirk and said Robinson didn’t talk much about LGBTQ issues.

“Usually, if he did talk about politics stuff, it was relating to Trump or current, like, policies being, like, issued or voted on,” the roommate said.

On September 10, 2025 – the day of the fatal shooting – Robinson left their apartment early in the morning, saying he had a long drive to work, the roommate said.

Robinson didn’t contact Twiggs directly until late that night, the roommate said. Prosecutors displayed a text conversation they said shows messages between the two beginning around 11 p.m.

Robinson texted his roommate to “drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard,” according to messages read aloud in court Thursday.

Investigators previously said in charging documents there was a handwritten note under the keyboard that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.”

“you weren’t the one who did it right????” the roommate texted Robinson, according to the messages shown in court.

“I am, I’m sorry,” Robinson allegedly replied.

Twiggs later asked, “why?” according to the messages presented in court.

“why did I do it?” Robinson allegedly responded. He added, “I had enough of his hatred. some hate can’t be negotiated out,” according to the texts presented in court.

Robinson discussed engraving bullets and needing to retrieve a rifle wrapped in a towel in other messages displayed Thursday.

The day after the shooting, Robinson spoke with his roomate at their apartment, Twiggs said.

“I just asked him in person if what he said was true the night before, and he said it was,” the roommate said.

Later that day, Robinson texted Twiggs saying he was going to turn himself in willingly, according to messages presented in court.

“One of my neighbors here is a deputy for the sheriff,” Robinson allegedly wrote. “We hope to keep things sort of quiet here.”

Investigators testified Robinson surrendered to police around 9 p.m. the same day.

Photos of suspected murder weapon shown in court

Investigators found the alleged murder weapon – a Mauser Model 98 .30-06 caliber bolt-action rifle with a mounted scope – wrapped in a towel within a wooded area near campus, said Jennifer Faumuina, a former agent with the State Bureau of Investigation.

The rifle contained one spent round and three unspent rounds, which were each engraved with different messages, she testified Thursday, as prosecutors displayed photos of the weapon and the bullets.

About a month before Kirk’s killing, Twiggs said Robinson asked for a Dremel rotary tool – often used for grinding or sanding – so he could engrave bullets for an upcoming hunting trip with his family.

“I just told him where the Dremel was and told him to make sure he doesn’t, like, set off a bullet on accident in the house,” the roommate said. “But I didn’t really think about it until then.”

After Robinson was in custody, investigators seized a Dremel and several cartridge casings – the same type of round that was found in the rifle – from the home he shared with Twiggs, Faumuina said.

One of the casings had the words “TEST SHOT” engraved on it, according to the photo shown in court.

The casings found inside Robinson’s home were fired by the rifle found near campus, according to a US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives report read aloud in court. The analysis also determined the recovered Dremel tool made the engravings on the cartridges found inside the rifle and inside Robinson’s home.

Investigators also collected shooting targets with holes in them, boxes of ammunition, a revolver and a handful of rifles from Robinson and Twiggs’ home, Faumuina said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Andi Babineau reported from Provo, Utah, while Nicki Brown reported and wrote this story in New York. CNN’s Sneha Dhandapani contributed to this report.