Authorities confirmed on Friday that social media detectives had it wrong when they spread speculation about who assassinated political influencer Charlie Kirk.
Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT) named Tyler Robinson, 22, as the suspect in the fatal shooting Wednesday of Kirk, which sparked instant speculation online about the killer’s identity, particularly from an online forum known as 4chan. Created for anime discussions in which users share anonymous posts, the forum has become an outlet for wider discourse, including political discussions.
Following the shooting at a Utah university, 4chan mistakenly identified Skye Valadez as the gunman who killed Kirk, who leaves behind a wife and two young children. The forum suggested Valadez was a transgender-identifying male who lived in Utah and had recorded a SoundCloud track called “Charlie Kirk Dead at 31,” marking a theory that became central to the speculation. The theory went viral on X, as 4chan pointed users to photos of Valadez that bore perceived similarities to surveillance footage of the suspect fleeing the scene released by the FBI amid the manhunt.
Based on photos released to the public and widely circulated on the internet, some users also identified Jack Bellows as a possible suspect, saying he was a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. A retired banker living in Canada named Michael Mallinson was among the other speculated suspects who denounced the viral allegations as false.
“I’m just shocked by it,” he told the New York Times on Wednesday. “How quickly it can happen, how one’s name and photo can get spread around quite quickly.”
“I would expect, because the news cycle moves so quickly, that it will blow over soon,” he added. “But there’s always a chance that some idiots somewhere will get hold of this information a few months from now and start making noise about it.”
Speculation around Mallinson sparked when X users wrongly matched his photos to footage of a man who was initially apprehended by police at Utah Valley University, where Kirk was shot. Police detained several people for questioning following the shooting but later clarified that they had been released and were “people of interest” rather than suspects.
George Zinn was one of those captured in viral video footage being apprehended and hauled away by Utah authorities at the school following the murder. After rumors spread on social media that he was the murderer, those turned out to be false. Authorities later confirmed that Zinn was an elderly local political agitator, not the suspect, according to the New York Post.
As the FBI and Utah investigators closed in on the killer, a widespread public interest case was evident as authorities received thousands of tips in connection with the assassination, the most since the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013.
Cox, the Utah governor, confirmed on Friday morning that authorities had captured Robinson, the southern Utah resident accused of killing Kirk, ending speculation and bringing a close to the tense manhunt.
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The governor encouraged people to stay off social media in remarks following the suspect’s revelation.
“Social media is a cancer in our society right now, and I would encourage people to log off, turn off, touch grass, go hug a family member, go out, and do good in the community,” Cox said.
