PROVO, Utah — The man accused of murdering influential right-wing activist Charlie Kirk broke down in tears of regret days after the killing, according to video testimony played in a Utah court on July 9, 2026.
Roommate Testifies About Regret
The testimony came on the fourth day of a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to try 23-year-old Tyler Robinson for the fatal shooting of Kirk on a Utah campus last September. Robinson faces the death penalty if convicted.
In a taped interview, Robinson's roommate Lance Twiggs told investigators: “I just asked him in person if what he said was true the night before, and he said it was. He started crying a little bit, and said he wishes he hadn’t done it.”
Relationship and Motive
Twiggs, who is transitioning to become a woman, was not merely a roommate but also in a romantic relationship with Robinson. Their relationship has fueled online speculation that anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric by Kirk, a Christian nationalist, may have motivated the murder.
Twiggs acknowledged that Robinson sometimes discussed politics, but “I personally had never heard him talk about Charlie Kirk before specifically.” Twiggs also said the couple had “not really” discussed the situation of transgender people and the LGBTQ+ community in the United States.
Text Confession
Investigators earlier revealed that Robinson confessed to the murder via text messages to Twiggs, expressing frustration with the “hatred” Kirk spread. The hearing in Provo is expected to conclude on July 10, 2026. Robinson has not yet indicated how he intends to plead.
