President Donald Trump stated that the suspect in the Charlie Kirk assassination "turned himself in," suggesting the suspect's father encouraged this action, according to remarks made between 12:47 PM and 1:31 PM UTC on September 12th. Separately, SOCS (Ret) Van Orden, identified as a Department of the Navy official, issued a strong condemnation of any uniformed or civilian employee who has acted with contempt toward the assassinated American, vowing swift and decisive action. Trump's comments on the suspect's surrender were made during a period when the individual involved in the September 10th assassination in Orem, Utah, was reportedly in custody. The President's specific phrasing indicated "the person that we think is the person we are looking for," subject to change. Meanwhile, Van Orden's statement specifically addressed "posts displaying contempt toward a fellow American who was assassinated," stating that such actions "bring discredit upon the Department, the [@USNavy] or the [@USMC] will be dealt with swiftly and decisively." This follows earlier announcements that the assassin had been taken into custody. Previously, on the morning of September 12th, President Trump announced on Fox News that authorities had apprehended the assassin with "a high degree of certainty." The context of Van Orden's statement and Trump's remarks occur within a reporting window that began at 12:47 PM UTC, following earlier reports of the suspect's arrest earlier that morning. Previous reporting indicated that the manhunt for Kirk's assassin had been ongoing, with authorities recovering the shooter's weapon and ammunition near Utah Valley University. Bill Ackman had also raised the reward for information leading to an arrest by $1 million, and new photos of a person of interest were released. The FBI stated on September 11th that they had no current information on the killer's whereabouts. There were also unrelated reports concerning President Trump's remarks about Chicago and the advancement of Stephen Miran's Federal Reserve nomination.
