LATEST UPDATE: Pro-trans messaging found on weapon that killed Charlie Kirk, new eyewitness account

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The FBI in Salt Lake City released photos of a “person of interest” in Charlie Kirk’s assassination, asking for public help.

DPS Commissioner Beau Mason said the college-aged suspect was captured on multiple cameras, adding that authorities “worked through the night” to gather the images.

At the press conference, FBI Special Agent Robert Bohls said the rifle believed to have killed Kirk—a bolt-action found in a wooded area—was recovered. The Wall Street Journal reported that ammunition near the weapon carried transgender-themed engravings.

Further reports indicate the firearm was specifically an older model Mauser .30-06 caliber bolt action rifle.

At the site of the shooting, Dylan Hope, an electrician, told USA TODAY that his colleague, who was operating an excavator when the shooting took place, believes he spoke with the assassin. Hope said the colleague spoke with a young man who appeared on the site and asked if he could walk through it.

“The alleged shooter, before any of the sirens or people were walking out, talked to the excavator guy,” Hope said. “The excavator guy stopped him because we’re not supposed to have people on here.”

The man told a construction worker he was “trying to get home safe” after the shooting, Hope said. Police later brought in a canine that tracked him through the site and onto a neighboring property, though it’s unclear if he had a vehicle nearby.

“I’ve been parking here every day and I didn’t see any cars I didn’t recognize,” he said.

Soon after USA TODAY reviewed the site, agents sealed it with police tape. Former ATF official Tom Chittum had earlier suggested the single shot pointed to a bolt-action rifle.

“.30-06 is a common hunting caliber, and the reports indicate it was an imported, older model,” said Tom Chittum, former ATF Associate Deputy Director. “This was a longer shot, that suggests a person has prepared and practiced, but you don’t necessarily need to be a police or military sniper to make that shot. With modern optics and some practice, it’s not an impossible shot.”

Chittum said the bolt-action rifle, typically a five-round hunting caliber, requires manual chambering after each shot, unlike a semi-automatic. USA TODAY’s analysis placed the shooter less than 150 yards from Kirk—well within reach of even a basic marksman, as Army recruits train to hit targets up to 325 yards. At that range, the recovered .30-06 round would face little effect from gravity or wind. Recovering the firearm will speed up the investigation, Chittum said, as it can be traced and tested for fingerprints and DNA.

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