Tyler Robinson,the 22-year-old accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk,grew up in a quiet,close-knit community in Washington,Utah,where most neighbors attended the same neighborhood church and know each other by their first name.
“I’m shocked,” said Kristin Schwiermann, a 66-year-old neighbor. “That’s not the kid I knew.”
Like most of the people in the community, robinson, his parents and two brothers attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints church less than a mile away, Scwiermann said.
So it was strange to Schwiermann and others when the quiet neighborhood became filled with strange vans, SUVs and other unmarked police cars at about 7:30 p.m. Thursday. She wondered if it had anything to do with the shooting of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University, but she had no inkling it would involve Tyler Robinson.
Three doors down, inside the Robinson home, a drama was unfolding.
Tyler Robinson’s father, Matt, came to realize his son was the focus of a desperate manhunt as images of him in a long-sleeve T-shirt and jeans began flashing across television and computer screens nationwide.
The family called their church bishop – also a neighbor – when Robinson threatened to take his own life, according to a law enforcement source who was not authorized to discuss the inquiry.