Discord Draws Scrutiny After Reported Role in Charlie Kirk Killing Investigation
Officials say messages linked to weapon handling surfaced as part of the probe; Discord says key communications likely occurred off-platform and is cooperating with authorities
Discord, the messaging platform popular with gamers and wider online communities, has emerged as part of the investigation into the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, officials and the company said.
Utah authorities and the governor's office said investigators reviewed messages tied to the suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, that referenced stowing and retrieving a rifle from a "drop point," engraving bullets and the uniqueness of a scope and rifle. Robinson was arrested last week on suspicion of killing Kirk, 31, while he was speaking on the campus of Utah Valley University.
A Discord spokesman told Fox News Digital the company identified an account belonging to the suspect but had not found or received evidence that the suspect planned the attack or promoted violence on Discord. The spokesman said the messages cited in reporting about weapon retrieval and planning details were not Discord messages and "likely took place on a phone-number based messaging platform." The company said it is working closely with the FBI and local authorities and will respond promptly to law enforcement requests.
During a Friday briefing, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said officials had seen messages about hiding and retrieving a rifle from a drop point. Media outlets, including The New York Times, reported that an acquaintance recognized Robinson from surveillance images and tagged a Discord username, prompting a string of messages in which Robinson joked about a doppelganger and later quipped about wanting a share of any reward if someone else in the chat turned him in.
Discord, founded as a communications platform for gamers, now reports more than 200 million monthly users who interact via text, voice and video in invite-only "servers" that resemble groups on other social platforms. The company's public policies prohibit hateful conduct and hate speech, define hate speech as content that degrades or promotes harm against protected groups, and set a minimum age of 13 for users in the United States and most other countries.
The platform has been cited in prior violent incidents and law-enforcement actions. The 2022 Buffalo mass shooter discussed plans on Discord before the attack, prompting the company to delete the server used and to express devastation at the platform's misuse. A man who attempted to assassinate a former U.S. president last year had an account Discord deactivated afterward; the company said that account was rarely used and that it had found no evidence the platform was used to plan that attack. Discord has also been identified as a conduit for threats that were later disrupted: in 2023 the company reported threatening messages from a 13-year-old to authorities, a report that led to an arrest and the prevention of a potential attack at a synagogue.
Discord has faced regulatory and legal scrutiny over safety protections for younger users. In April, New Jersey sued the company alleging deceptive business practices that failed to protect minors. The litigation asserts that private and semi-private channels can foster extremist rhetoric and harmful content that are difficult to monitor.
Tech platforms routinely play a role in criminal investigations by providing user data in response to legal requests; companies balance privacy considerations with cooperation requests and content-moderation obligations. Discord said it had not uncovered evidence that the suspect promoted violence on its platform and reiterated its cooperation with investigators.
As authorities continue their probe into the killing of Kirk, the role of private messaging platforms in facilitating or documenting criminal activity remains a focus of public discussion and legal scrutiny. The incident underscores ongoing questions about how companies monitor closed communities, how and when platforms should intervene, and how investigators distinguish between communications that occur on a given app and messages exchanged via other, phone-number based services.