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| Man arrested for allegedly vandalizing Charlie Kirk memorial in Arizona | Man arrested for allegedly vandalizing Charlie Kirk memorial in Arizona |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Ryder Corral held as secretary of state Rubio doubles down on pledges to remove visas for critics of far-right activist | |
| A 19-year-old man has been arrested on allegations of vandalizing a memorial to Charlie Kirk as the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, doubled down on pledges to remove visas for Kirk critics. | |
| Ryder Corral was arrested at 9.50am on Sunday by police in Phoenix, Arizona after witnesses say they saw a man damaging a memorial for Kirk outside the headquarters of Turning Points USA, the organisation Kirk led. | |
| “Officers were in the area to assist with traffic control due to a large community presence in the area following recent events,” said Sgt Phil Krynsky, a spokesperson for Phoenix police. Corral now faces criminal damage and disorderly conduct charges. | “Officers were in the area to assist with traffic control due to a large community presence in the area following recent events,” said Sgt Phil Krynsky, a spokesperson for Phoenix police. Corral now faces criminal damage and disorderly conduct charges. |
| Videos posted online showed a man walking through the memorial over flowers and other mementoes before he was grabbed by another man, thrown to the ground, and arrested by nearby officers. | Videos posted online showed a man walking through the memorial over flowers and other mementoes before he was grabbed by another man, thrown to the ground, and arrested by nearby officers. |
| The man in the videos was later identified by Krynsky as Corral, according to Arizona Central. | The man in the videos was later identified by Krynsky as Corral, according to Arizona Central. |
| News video showed Corral wearing a T-shirt showing an American flag and an eagle that was similar to one worn in surveillance photos by Kirk’s suspected killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, whose arrest was announced on Friday after a two-day manhunt. But police have not said whether they believe Corral meant to genuinely express anything with the shirt. | News video showed Corral wearing a T-shirt showing an American flag and an eagle that was similar to one worn in surveillance photos by Kirk’s suspected killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, whose arrest was announced on Friday after a two-day manhunt. But police have not said whether they believe Corral meant to genuinely express anything with the shirt. |
| Robinson was “not cooperating” with authorities after the arrest and had not confessed to carrying out the shooting, Utah’s governor, Spencer Cox, told news shows on Sunday. The governor said authorities were still trying to establish a motive for the killing, though Cox made it a point to say investigators’ interviews with people close to Robinson revealed the suspect had views that were in opposition to Kirk’s. | Robinson was “not cooperating” with authorities after the arrest and had not confessed to carrying out the shooting, Utah’s governor, Spencer Cox, told news shows on Sunday. The governor said authorities were still trying to establish a motive for the killing, though Cox made it a point to say investigators’ interviews with people close to Robinson revealed the suspect had views that were in opposition to Kirk’s. |
| Kirk was killed on Wednesday at an open-air event held by Turning Point USA at Utah Valley University. | Kirk was killed on Wednesday at an open-air event held by Turning Point USA at Utah Valley University. |
| Later on Monday, Rubio, who is visiting Jerusalem and met with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, gave an interview to Fox News in which he reiterated the threat to remove visas for those who “celebrate” Kirk’s killing. | |
| “We should not be giving visas to people who are going to come to the United States and do things like celebrate the murder, the execution, the assassination of a political figure. And if they’re already here, we should be revoking their visa,” he said. | |
| “Why would we want to bring people into our country if they’re going to engage in negative and destructive behavior?” | |
| CNN reported that Rubio’s deputy, Chris Landau, said last week that he had told consular officers “to undertake appropriate action” when assessing visas for anyone “praising, rationalizing, or making light of” the death of Kirk, who espoused bigoted, extreme, white nationalist views. | |
| Kirk’s funeral service is set to be held on 21 September at the 63,000-seat stadium where the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals play. The stadium is in a suburb of Phoenix. | |
| Also on Sunday but in Utah, authorities said they had arrested two men on suspicion of placing an incendiary device under a Fox News media vehicle in Salt Lake City. | Also on Sunday but in Utah, authorities said they had arrested two men on suspicion of placing an incendiary device under a Fox News media vehicle in Salt Lake City. |
| The bomb did not go off, having been lit but failing to function as designed, according to court records cited by the Utah CBS affiliate KUTV. | The bomb did not go off, having been lit but failing to function as designed, according to court records cited by the Utah CBS affiliate KUTV. |