The search for the killer of Charlie Kirk, the conservative firebrand whose assassination sent shockwaves across the nation, has taken a dramatic and chilling turn. New video footage, captured by an eyewitness and now circulating widely online, has provided the most direct evidence yet of the suspected shooter’s movements, transforming a complex investigation into a high-stakes manhunt. The footage, raw and shaky, is a stark reminder of the digital age’s power to both document tragedy and offer crucial clues to law enforcement.

While standing under a white gazebo and addressing a crowd of around 3,000 people, Kirk appeared to be hit with a single shot from a vantage point. Eyewitnesses at the scene recall seeing a ‘fountain of blood’ gushing from his neck as he raised his arm. Kirk’s wife and family were also at the scene but reported safe, with no other injuries being recorded.

Footage captures Kirk’s final moments, including his last words. When asked, “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”, Kirk responded, “Counting or not counting gang violence?”

A slew of videos have been doing the rounds on social media, including one that some are saying shows the killer fleeing the scene on top of a roof. Although it takes some zooming in, it looks like someone can be seen running to the left as people in the crowd duck and others run for cover.

Analyzing the footage, Brian Allen of Allenanalysis suggests it was tactical: “Elevated position. Long-range precision. Clean getaway. That’s not a lone crazy; that’s a trained hand.”

He goes on to add: “He ran off the roof and vanished. No traffic stop. No bystander footage. No perimeter breach. Just gone.”

The video, which was initially posted to social media and later enhanced by outlets like The Washington Post, was filmed by Tanner Maxwell, a business school student at Utah Valley University. Maxwell was recording the crowd gathered to hear Kirk speak in a campus courtyard, directly across from a building called the Losee Center. Maxwell told The Post, “Right when I hit the camera is when I heard the shot go off.”

The footage, when zoomed in and stabilized, reveals a small but distinct figure moving across the rooftop of the Losee Center. The person, dressed in dark clothing, can be seen running for a mere two seconds before disappearing from the camera’s view as it pans away. The roof is approximately 140 yards from where Kirk was fatally struck in the neck. Following the shooting, other videos show yellow police tape cordoning off the area and a small group of police officers near the building, suggesting the footage was a key piece of information from the outset.

University spokeswoman Ellen Treanor confirmed that “the shot came from the direction of the Losee Center,” and Beau Mason, commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, corroborated this, stating at a news conference that the shot appeared to be “a longer-distance shot from a roof.” He also described a person of interest as being dressed in “all dark clothing.” The Utah Department of Public Safety later released a statement that “the gunman is believed to have fired from the roof of a building down to the location of the public event in the student courtyard.”

The significance of the footage cannot be overstated. While no suspects have been named or charged, and it’s not yet clear if the individual on the roof was the shooter, the video offers a tangible, visual trail for investigators to follow. It has become a central point of the ongoing investigation, helping authorities track the movements of the suspect. According to Commissioner Mason, investigators were able to track the suspect’s path before and after the assassination, noting that the gunman reportedly arrived on campus, moved through stairwells to the rooftop of the Losee Center, fired a single shot, and then fled off-campus into a nearby neighborhood. Authorities have contacted homeowners with cameras and witnesses to gather more leads.

The widespread dissemination of this and other videos has also reignited a long-standing debate about the role of media in the digital age. Unlike in the past, when traditional news organizations served as gatekeepers, deciding what graphic content to show, the raw, unfiltered videos of the shooting were available almost instantly online. Footage of Kirk being shot, his body recoiling, and blood gushing from the wound circulated on X, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube, with some clips even shown in slow motion.

For many, this instant availability of such a horrifying event proved too much. People on social media pleaded for others to stop spreading the images, with one message reading, “For the love of God and Charlie’s family, just stop.” YouTube stated it was removing “some graphic content” that lacked sufficient context, and Meta’s rules allow for such videos but apply warning labels. Despite these measures, the content was already out there, viewed by millions.

Professor Sarah Kreps of Cornell University, who has studied the role of social media in such events, noted that traditional news outlets can send an important message by being cautious in what they show, but in a politically polarized country, the easy availability of shocking images runs the risk of making society’s wound even more painful. It also illustrates how the “gatekeeping” role of news organizations has fundamentally changed. The hundreds of people at the event, many with their phones raised, became unwitting chroniclers of a national tragedy.

The new drone footage and eyewitness videos are not just pieces of evidence; they are a stark reflection of a new and frightening reality. They underscore the chilling possibility that such a targeted attack, carried out with apparent precision from a distance, represents a new frontier of political violence. The presence of a high-powered, bolt-action rifle, as described by authorities, speaks to a premeditated and professional-level attack, not a spontaneous act of rage.

As the manhunt continues, the videos remain a constant reminder of the day’s terror. They serve as both a tool for justice and a raw, painful archive of a tragedy that has left the country reeling. The police are continuing their investigation, but as of now, the person on the roof remains a person of interest, and the shooter remains at large.