Prosecutors presented chilling text messages Thursday showing Tyler Robinson boasted to his partner that the gun he allegedly used to kill Charlie Kirk worked “just fine,” the New York Post reports.
In the exchange, Robinson, 23, told his partner Lance Twiggs the rifle belonged to his grandfather and said he was worried police could trace its serial number back to him, according to a text sent shortly after the September 10, 2025, shooting. “Judging from today, I’d say grandpas gun does just fine,” Robinson wrote, according to the texts shown during his preliminary hearing.
Prosecutors said Robinson circled back to the scene and sat in his car for roughly an hour hoping to recover the weapon, but ultimately left it behind. “I had to leave it in a bush where I changed outfits. Didn’t have time to bring it,” he texted Twiggs, before asking him to delete the exchange.
The pair also discussed Robinson returning to the Utah Valley University campus to search for the rifle. “Getting worried, hard to know for sure but I’m not finding my rifle, could be in the wrong spot,” he wrote.
Forensic experts testified this week that DNA believed to match Robinson was recovered from a towel allegedly used to hide the rifle and from a screwdriver found near the rooftop where authorities say he fired on Kirk during a campus debate. A Utah Department of Public Safety sergeant testified the fatal shot came from a perch about 415 feet away.
In another exchange revealed in court, Robinson panicked after realizing he’d sent a text referencing a confession note. “Look under my keyboard,” he wrote, prompting Twiggs to ask if he was joking. “I TRIED TO DELETE THAT,” Robinson replied in all caps. When Twiggs later asked directly if he was the one who did it, Robinson answered, “I am, I’m so sorry,” adding, “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”
Robinson is charged with seven counts including aggravated murder in the killing of Kirk, 31, who was shot while speaking to a crowd of more than 3,000 people as part of his organization, Turning Point USA. Prosecutors, who are seeking the death penalty, argue the texts prove Robinson targeted Kirk over his conservative political views. He has yet to enter a plea.