'Becomes their reality': Expert warns of app used by suspected Charlie Kirk assassin

SALT LAKE CITY — Investigators say that the suspected assassin of Charlie Kirk, Tyler Robinson, was a regular user of the platform Discord and communicated with friends there before and after the shooting of the conservative activist and Turning Point USA co-founder.

The app and website are regularly used by gamers for discussing games and setting up voice chats during gameplay, but the platform has also grown to host a wide variety of interests in recent years.

Former FBI agent Greg Rogers said he's worked cases before where extremists would spend hours online each day on similar online forums.

"It's not a(n) exaggeration to say it becomes their reality," Rogers explained. "They spend hours a day in there. And I think that's what we're going to find in this case, when we're interviewing family members and friends, we're going to find out he was in there hours a day."

Rogers said parents especially should look out for teens who may be spending long stretches of time alone, with access to a laptop or smartphone.

"Unfortunately, there's too much unsupervised time on these types of devices — laptops, cellphones," Rogers said. "Parents need to do a much better job of knowing who their kids are talking to and the types of information they've become interested in."

Rogers also said there are often warning signs before a violent crime is carried out. He warns that people who notice unusual communications should report them, even if they are uncertain.

"We always find out so much after these cases," Rogers said. "You know, the next question is always, 'Why didn't you call law enforcement?' And they're like, 'Oh, I've known this guy forever. I didn't think he would do something like that.'"

Related topics