The tech company whose platform authorities claim Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer used to plan his murder has denied their version of events.
Discord said Friday that Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspect, did have an account, but that he did not use it to plan the shooting Wednesday afternoon at Utah Valley University.
That directly contradicted Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who had said at a news conference Friday morning that Robinson’s roommate had shown authorities messages on Discord from Robinson.
“The content of these messages included messages affiliated with the contact Tyler, stating a need to retrieve a rifle from a drop point, leaving the rifle in a bush, messages related to visually watching the area where a rifle was left, and a message referring to having left the rifle wrapped in a towel,” Cox said.
Cox added that the messages also mentioned engraving bullets and a unique scope and rifle.
It’s unclear if those alleged messages were sent before or after the shooting.
But a Discord spokesperson pushed back later in the day, telling The Washington Post that there was no evidence Robinson planned the shooting on the platform.
“The messages referenced in recent reporting about planning details do not appear to be Discord messages,” the spokesperson said.
“These were communications between the suspect’s roommate and a friend after the shooting, where the roommate was recounting the contents of a note the suspect had left elsewhere.”
The confusion comes as FBI Director Kash Patel faces criticism for his handling of the investigation into Kirk’s death. His blunders included claiming on social media Wednesday night that the FBI had apprehended “the subject of the shooting,” only to later release that person, who was innocent. Additionally, FBI leaders weeks ago forced the resignation of the head of the Salt Lake City Field office for reasons that are unclear, MSNBC reported.
Discord said it still banned Robinson’s account after his early Friday arrest because he allegedly violated its off-platform behavior policy, which bars—among other things—“participating in acts of violent extremism or acts related to a violent organization,” as well as any activity that results in homicide.
“We strongly condemn violence of any kind, including political violence, and we will continue to coordinate closely with law enforcement,” the Discord spokesperson said.
Released in 2015, Discord is a voice, video and text platform that has about 200 million users, most of whom are computer gamers.
On Friday, authorities revealed messages Robinson allegedly inscribed on bullet casings found next to the rifle believed to have been used in Kirk’s killing—one of which was a video game command for releasing a bomb.
“Hey, fascist! Catch!” Robinson wrote on another.
“Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, ciao,” read another—an apparent reference to an Italian anti-fascist anthem.
Others included a meme phrase linked to roleplay in furry communities, in which people pretend to be—and sometimes dress up as—animals.
Another phrase authorities found on a bullet casing read: “If you read this, you are gay, lmao.”
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