Authorities have recovered what they believe is the rifle used to kill conservative activist Charlie Kirk, along with ammunition engraved with phrases referencing so-called “transgender and antifascist ideology,” according to a report from The Wall Street Journal that was later called into question by a senior law enforcement source.
The recovered weapon, a high-powered bolt-action rifle, was found in a wooded area near Utah Valley University, where Kirk was shot Wednesday while addressing hundreds of students.
“There were also three unspent rounds in the magazine, all with wording on them,” according to the Journal’s report. “Justice Department officials cautioned that the investigation was still in its preliminary stages, and that investigators were still examining the ammunition.”
According to The New York Times, however, a senior law-enforcement official cautioned that the WSJ report had not been verified by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and “might turn out to have been misread or misinterpreted.”
Meanwhile, the Times and other outlets reported that the recovered rifle was a Mauser .30-06, a military-turned-hunting rifle used by Nazi Germany during World War II, which was imported to the U.S. after the war.
Law enforcement sources said the shooter is believed to be male and “appears to be of college age” and that he “blended” in with the college population. The FBI released a photo of a “person of interest” on social media, asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the individual. Authorities arrested and later released two subjects on Wednesday.
Start your day with essential news from Salon.
Sign up for our free morning newsletter, Crash Course.
Officials said Thursday that the rifle and other forensic evidence are being analyzed at the bureau’s lab.
“We are exhausting every lead, we have every officer invested in this, every investigator, every local agency,” Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason said. “The outpouring of support for the law enforcement community has been astounding. We are investing everything we have into this and we will catch this individual.”
Kirk, 31, was struck in the neck, apparently by a single bullet fired from a rooftop roughly 200 yards from the stage. The gunman allegedly escaped on foot through nearby woods, leaving behind the rifle.
On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced that Kirk, a close ally of the president’s, would be posthumously awarded with a Medal of Freedom.
The post FBI seeks information on “person of interest” in Charlie Kirk killing appeared first on Salon.com.