Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old accused of assassinating Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, once boasted about his long-distance shooting skills, according to a former coworker who spoke exclusively to The Post on Saturday.
Robinson, who worked as a first-year electrician in 2023 on a new apartment complex in St. George, Utah, was known for being extremely quiet—except when the topic of firearms came up.
“Right after Black Friday, I was showing my supervisor a pistol I’d just bought,” said the 25-year-old coworker, who asked to remain anonymous. “Tyler came over with another guy and we all started talking about guns. That’s when he said he once made a 450-yard shot.”
The coworker noted that it was one of the rare times Robinson actively joined a conversation. “He got excited—well, as excited as he could get. He didn’t show much emotion, always seemed kind of blank. Really quiet.”
At the time, Robinson was employed by High Output Electric, a Washington County-based company. Both electricians were subcontracted through Wilde Electric to help wire the apartment complex over an eight-month period. The coworker provided employment documentation confirming his role on the project.
Attempts to reach Wilde Electric’s owner, Terry Wilde, were unsuccessful. Shane Bennett, who owns High Output Electric, confirmed Robinson worked there until late 2023 but couldn’t recall whether Robinson quit or was let go.
Robinson allegedly fired the fatal shot from the roof of the Losee Center Building at Utah Valley University—approximately 200 yards from where Kirk was speaking in front of a crowd of 3,000 under a pop-up tent.
“When I heard the news, I was shocked,” said the former coworker. “I called someone at Wilde Electric and asked if Tyler showed up for work. He hadn’t. I said, ‘Dude, I think Tyler was the one who did the shooting,’ and he didn’t believe me.”
He said a later call to Robinson went straight to voicemail.
“He was the last person I would’ve expected. When they said the shooter was a young guy from St. George, there were hundreds of others I would’ve thought of first.”
Utah Governor Spencer Cox has labeled the killing a politically motivated “assassination,” calling Robinson “deeply indoctrinated with leftist ideology.” But the coworker said Robinson actively avoided political discussions.
“One time, we were talking politics in one of the units, and instead of joining us, Tyler went into the laundry room and sat on a bucket with an earbud in,” he recalled, noting that most workers on the job had conservative views.
Still, there was one detail the coworker said stuck with him—something he now sees differently.
“Tyler always walked around with his fists clenched—like, really tight. I once joked, ‘Are you angry, Tyler?’ and he just said, ‘That’s just what I do.’ He was soft-spoken, but always had his fists like that.”
He added, “Even in the security footage from UVU, you can see his fists are clenched tight.”