Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer justified his actions by saying ‘some hatred cannot be negotiated with’, FBI Director Kash Patel has revealed.
The embattled head of the bureau, who faces a Senate grilling on Tuesday over his handling of the investigation, revealed the shocking motive of 22-year-old Tyler Robinson.
‘I will say what was found in terms of information, a text message exchange, where the suspect specifically stated he had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and he was gonna do that,’ Patel told Fox News.
Patel added that when Robinson was questioned why he would kill the conservative influencer, he responded: ‘Some hatred cannot be negotiated with.’
Robinson will appear in court today – where he’s set to be charged for Kirk’s death.
The investigation, according to Patel, has featured witness interviews between both the FBI and local and regional law enforcement, where they found Robinson ‘essentially admitted’ to killing Kirk.
DNA from the towel that was wrapped around the firearm that was used to kill Kirk was a match for the suspect, Patel said.
He also tempered concerns about how long details pertaining to the investigation were taking, saying that he ‘won’t stylize the evidence’ but that ‘information will come out.’
Patel faced a hail of criticism for his handling of the investigation, with alleged assassin Tyler Robinson being arrested days later only after his father turned him into authorities.
Director Patel was scheduled to appear on Capitol Hill this week before the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and now he will undoubtedly face a slew of questions over his agency’s conduct during the search for his murder.
Prominent conservatives have blasted Patel for his handling of the investigation, which included three botched arrests.
The killer’s capture was announced almost 44 hours after he shot Kirk – and only after his own father turned him in.
Christopher Rufo, a fellow at the conservative think-tank the Manhattan Institute, wrote on X Friday that it was ‘time for Republicans to assess whether Kash Patel is the right man to run the FBI’.
Rufo also added that Patel ‘performed terribly in the last few days, and it’s not clear whether he has the operational expertise to investigate, infiltrate, and disrupt the violent movements—of whatever ideology—that threaten the peace in the United States.’
Christian conservative radio host Erick Erickson also weighed in, wrote on X that the ‘FBI situation is concerning.’
National Review writer Michael Brendan Dougherty did not call out Patel explicitly but noted on X, ‘so the killer’s dad does all the work, then law enforcement congratulates themselves and each other and heads out for celebratory beers.’
‘Are they going to look into this Discord chat? The roommate? The press that can’t even quote Kirk accurately concludes the killer “self-radicalized” and I’m supposed to take that at face value? That’s it?,’ questioned Dougherty.
President Donald Trump however, had a different take on the way that the hunt played out: ‘I am very proud of the FBI. Kash—and everyone else— they have done a great job,’ Trump told Fox News.
X user Pro America Politics also posted in favor of Patel, writing ‘we aren’t firing Kash Patel. Stop. The FBI arrested this killer within 48 hours. This was an excellent job. I have a 100% faith in Kash Patel.’
On Monday’s Fox & Friends, Patel addressed the blowback.
‘I was telling the world what the FBI was doing as we were doing it. And I am continuing to do that,’ he said.
‘I stated in that message that we had a “subject.” And that we were going to interview him. And we did and he was released.’
‘The job of the FBI is not just to manhunt the actual suspect who did the killing or suspects but it’s also to eliminate targets and eliminate subjects who are not involved in the process. That’s what we were doing.
‘Could I have worded it a little better in the heat of the moment? Sure. But do I regret putting it out? Absolutely not.’
‘I challenge anyone out there to find a director who has been more transparent and more willing to work with the media with high profile cases or any cases that the FBI is handling than we have been under my leadership.’
As authorities searched for a suspect last Wednesday night, Patel dined at the ritzy New York eatery Rao’s on the Upper East Side, two sources told NBC News.
It remains unclear whether Patel was at Rao’s at the time of his posts on X.
Asked whether Patel had dined there and for a response to the scrutiny surrounding his job, a spokesperson for FBI said: ‘The FBI worked with our law enforcement partners in Utah to bring to justice the individual allegedly responsible for the horrific murder of Charlie Kirk, and we will continue to be transparent with the American people with real-time updates as we are able.’
Four former senior FBI officials told NBC News that Patel’s posts were premature.
Patel was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to the post of FBI director with a vote of 51 to 49 on the 20th of February of this year, precisely one month after Trump was inaugurated for a second term.
Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska opposed his nomination.
His time at the agency has been marred in controversy, most notably by the agency’s refusal to release all files connected to Jeffrey Epstein. Both Patel and Trump previously promised to release the Epstein Files.
