Warning: May contain descriptions that some people find disturbing
The alleged shooter has been arrested since this publication and named a Tyler Robinson. This story continues to develop.
There's continued confusion surrounding the murder of Charlie Kirk, with the MAGA commentator shot dead at the age of 31. Kirk had been speaking at Utah Valley University as part of his American Comeback Tour, and in the midst of answering a question about gun violence, he was shot through the neck with a single bullet.
University officials confirmed the shot came from atop a visitor center, with viral footage appearing to show the lone gunman fleeing the scene. Eyewitnesses have described the horrors of Kirk's shooting, while emergency dispatch audio reveals the police's next steps.
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Two arrests were made, but after both subjects were released, the FBI seems to be at a loose end. Pictures of the male assailant have now been released, and as a nationwide manhunt ensues, conspiracy theories are already starting to swirl.
Similar to the attempted June 2024 assassination of President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania, conspiracy theorists are convinced there's more to the Kirk murder.
Now, a private plane that appeared to depart from a nearby airfield shortly after the shooting is at the center of a conspiracy theory.
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Provo Airport (PVU) is a regional airfield that lies less than 15 minutes from the UVU campus, with FlightRadar24 noting that a Bombardier Challenger 300 departed at 1:15 PM as a possible getaway vehicle for the escaping gunman.
Vanishing from the radar in Arizona at around 1:43 PM, the jet reappeared at 2:30 PM when it left Page Municipal Airport for a return to PVU. The jet is registered to software company Komigo, belonging to a man called Derek Maxfield. As the FBI in Salt Lake City and Provo Airport officials refused to comment on the journey, it sparked a flurry of debate online.
Now, Maxfield himself has spoken out and (hopefully) put the theories to bed. Posting on Instagram, he clarified how the jet left Provo with two pilots and no passengers, then picked up himself and seven passengers for a return trip to Utah.
The Daily Mail included comments from the software CEO, who explained: "As often happens, unfortunately, in the wake of such terrifying and public events, a variety of baseless theories and suspicions around Mr Kirk's murder immediately took hold on social media, including one that has unfairly impacted our family."
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Wanting to 'set the record straight', Maxfield went into detail about why the jet vanished from radar, adding: "Radar services with air traffic control were terminated in mutual agreement between Denver FAA center and N888KG approximately 10 miles from landing at PGA, which is consistent with generally accepted standard practice when flying in and out of non-towered airports like PGA."
Maxfield reiterated: "Any suggestion that the flights by N888KG yesterday are in any way connected to the tragic shooting of Mr Kirk is inaccurate, false and without any credible basis of any kind.
"To our knowledge, no one associated with yesterday's flights by N888KG has been contacted by law enforcement for any reason."
He also offered his condolences to Kirk's family as he branded his murder as 'horrifying and senseless'.
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The airport theory was sparked by retired FBI agent James Gagliano, who appeared on Fox News and suggested the airport escape idea: "This is a big concern because this person, between three to five minutes of that shot going off, could have been in a vehicle on his way out, and miles and miles away.
"Provo Airport is only 45 minutes from there; these are all things you have to consider. This is going to be long and laborious."