Just before officials on the scene of the shooting in Utah briefed the press on Wednesday, Kash Patel said on social media the person responsible for the shooting was in custody.
In fairness to Patel (which is a phrase I NEVER thought I’d type!) I thought the phrasing he used was that a “person of interest” was “in custody”, which was technically true at the time?
"On Wednesday evening, as word of Mr. Kirk’s killing reverberated around the nation, Mr. Patel, a former podcaster, posted welcome but fleeting news on his official X account.
“The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody,” he wrote to his 1.8 million followers. “Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi.”
Mr. Patel wrote the message after speaking with agents working the case, and quickly posted it himself without consulting his leadership team, according to two people with knowledge of his actions."
Which is why I always say, in the early hours on events like this, don’t really believe ANYTHING without confirmation.
In fairness to Patel (which is a phrase I NEVER thought I’d type!) I thought the phrasing he used was that a “person of interest” was “in custody”, which was technically true at the time?
Apparently, no, it was a tweet, so fuck that guy:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/us/politics/fbi-patel-kirk-shooting.html
"On Wednesday evening, as word of Mr. Kirk’s killing reverberated around the nation, Mr. Patel, a former podcaster, posted welcome but fleeting news on his official X account.
“The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody,” he wrote to his 1.8 million followers. “Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi.”
Mr. Patel wrote the message after speaking with agents working the case, and quickly posted it himself without consulting his leadership team, according to two people with knowledge of his actions."
Which is why I always say, in the early hours on events like this, don’t really believe ANYTHING without confirmation.