Month: September 2025

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IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — A 47-year-old Idaho Falls man was arrested last week for the alleged sexual exploitation of a child, Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador announced today.

Jason Roemmich was taken into custody by investigators with the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit last Wednesday, September 24. He has been formally charged with 10 counts of possession of sexually exploitative material and is currently being held in the Bonneville County Jail.

The arrest was the result of a collaborative investigation involving multiple agencies. The Attorney General’s ICAC Unit received help from the Idaho Falls Police Department, Pocatello Police Department, Madison County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office in building a case against Roemmich.

“Every arrest we make is a step toward protecting Idaho children from exploitation,” said Attorney General Labrador. “I’m grateful for the hard work of our ICAC investigators and the partnerships we’ve built with law enforcement agencies across the state to protect children.”

Authorities encourage anyone with information regarding the exploitation of children to contact local police, the Attorney General’s ICAC Unit at 208-947-8700, or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.

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By Danya Gainor, Holly Yan, CNN

(CNN) — Far below the piercing spires atop every Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel rests a sign that beckons, “Visitors welcome” – a testament to the faith’s robust evangelizing efforts.

But on Sunday morning, a former Marine and Iraq War veteran took advantage of the denomination’s open arms – plowing his truck into an LDS church in Michigan, shooting worshippers with an assault weapon and setting the chapel on fire.

At least four people were killed at the church in tranquil Grand Blanc Township. Eight others were wounded. And up to seven people could be unaccounted for as search crews resume a harrowing search in the charred debris of what used to be a haven of hope.

The assailant died in a shootout with police. It’s not clear why he unleashed multifaceted horror at this particular church, about 60 miles northwest of Detroit. The FBI is investigating the attack as an act of targeted violence, authorities said.

“The FBI is currently executing multiple search warrants at the residences and the family homes of this perpetrator to try to get to the bottom of why he would commit such an act of evil,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Monday morning, citing her earlier conversation with FBI Director Kash Patel.

“Based on my conversations with the FBI director, all they know right now is this was an individual who hated people of the Mormon faith, and they are trying to understand more about this, how premeditated it was, how much planning went into it, whether he left a note,” she said, adding the killer’s family is cooperating.

The chapel on McCandlish Road, a quiet stretch dotted with houses near a sprawling golf course and lake, was among 324 mass shootings this year in the US. It’s also the latest place of worship devastated by America’s unrelenting gun violence – from a Catholic church in Minneapolis to a synagogue in Pittsburgh to a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

Sundays are “supposed to be a time of peace and a time of reflection and worship,” Timothy Jones, who belongs to an LDS congregation 15 minutes away from Grand Blanc, told the Associated Press.

But in the wake of violence at houses of worship, a shooting “feels inevitable,” he said, “and all the more tragic because of that.”

‘A big bang, and the doors flew open’

It had been what the denomination calls a “fast Sunday,” when members globally are encouraged once a month to forgo two meals and donate the food, or the money they would have spent on food, to the poor.

“This is a Sunday in which members of the church are being told to think of other people, to be charitable, to be kind, to reach out and give,” said Matthew Bowman, professor of history and religion at Claremont Graduate University.

Fasting is also common in the church in times of grieving – and those headed to the weekly 10 a.m. service in Grand Blanc had reason for it.

Just a day earlier, the leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson, had died.

Late Sunday morning, the worshippers had just finished the Sacrament – the first half of the two-hour service, after which some congregants leave – when the attack unfolded, a churchgoer named Paula told CNN affiliate WXYZ.

“We heard a big bang,” she said, “and the doors flew open.”

A four-door pickup with two American flags sitting straight up against the back window in the bed rammed into the front of the chapel.

The 40-year-old attacker, Thomas Jacob Sanford, fired several rounds from an assault weapon at the worshippers, police later said.

Churchgoer Brian was trying to help some elderly ladies into his car when the gunman opened fire on their vehicle, he told WXYZ.

“We were trying to gather as many people as we could,” said Brian, his button-down shirt stained with blood and right hand wrapped in gauze. “I saw the active shooter come out of the building, and at that point, I just started trying to drive away.”

Paula couldn’t see the shooter, she said, and didn’t know whether he had entered the church.

“I didn’t know if we had to get down because we couldn’t see anybody,” she said.

Churchgoers rushed to protect children, shielding them and moving them to safety, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said Sunday.

When nurses on strike at nearby Henry Ford Genesys Hospital heard about the shooting, some left the picket line and ran to the nearby church to help first responders, Teamsters Local 332 President Dan Glass said.

“Human lives matter more than our labor dispute,” he said.

But gunfire wasn’t the only danger. A fire had started in the church’s red brick meeting house.

“All of a sudden, I saw smoke coming out,” Cindy Walsh, who was at home near the chapel, told WXYZ. “And then people were coming out.”

Exhaustive search for victims continues

Police officers descended on the scene some 30 seconds after the first 911 call, Renye said. Two pursued the suspect and “engaged in gunfire.”

Eight minutes after police arrived, the gunman was killed in the parking lot.

Meanwhile, the raging fire moved rapidly, quickly engulfing the chapel – with an unknown number of people still in the church – as it billowed massive plumes of thick, black smoke.

As the sun went down, crews were still sifting through debris and “working tirelessly to find additional bodies,” Renye said, adding he couldn’t confirm the exact number of people missing.

Up to seven people may be unaccounted for, a law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told CNN late Sunday.

Chapel building a ‘total loss’

Authorities are “trying to determine exactly when and where that fire ended up coming from and how it got started,” though they believe the shooter started the fire “deliberately,” Renye added.

Some victims were “near the fire and they were unable to get out of the church,” the police chief said.

Sanford used an accelerant, like gasoline, police believe, to light the church on fire, said James Deir, special agent in charge of the Detroit field division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Evidence technicians went to process the scene after the fire was extinguished, and investigators said they found “some suspected explosive devices.”

“I’m shaken, I’m very shaken,” Walsh said. “I’ve seen a change in this world. There’s so much hate in this world. I just don’t understand it.”

The chapel, once bathed in sunlight and surrounded by greenery, is now unrecognizable. The building is a “total loss,” Renye said.

Debris piles have replaced pews; the welcoming meeting house has closed its doors; and the LDS church’s mounting grief has swelled.

And the tall white spire, which once towered over Grand Blanc worshippers as it reached toward heaven, is gone.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Josh Campbell contributed to this report.

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By Zoe Sottile, CNN

(CNN) — More than two weeks after Charlie Kirk, the conservative firebrand and close ally of President Donald Trump, was shot and killed while speaking at Utah Valley University, attorneys for his suspected killer appeared in court Monday – the latest step on the lengthy road to a state trial.

Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old who grew up in a Utah suburb and briefly attended Utah State University before dropping out and enrolling in an electrical apprenticeship program, faces a flurry of charges in Utah related to Kirk’s death: aggravated murder, two counts of obstruction of justice, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of witness tampering, and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child.

He did not enter a plea to the charges against him at the Monday waiver hearing.

Robinson, who is being held in custody without bail, appeared in Utah’s Fourth District Court virtually, without video. The hearing is part of the state’s case against the alleged shooter, as the possibility of federal charges still looms. The hearing marked Robinson’s defense attorneys’ first appearances as his counsel. They scheduled another waiver hearing for October 30, where the suspect will appear in person.

Prosecutor Chad Grunander said Monday there was a “voluminous” amount of discovery material in the case, which he would provide to the defense shortly. He noted the killing took place in front of thousands of students at Utah Valley University, so the process to identify witnesses could be laborious.

The shocking killing – seen by students in person and many more people in videos that spread swiftly online – has inflamed an already polarized political landscape. The president, who credited Kirk with helping galvanize the youth vote for his reelection, has blamed the “radical left” for political violence and hailed Kirk as a “martyr for truth and freedom.” And people, including a Washington Post columnist, say they have been fired over comments made in the aftermath of Kirk’s killing.

Thousands of people attended an emotional memorial service for Kirk in Arizona, where the president and other prominent conservative leaders spoke.

Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty for Robinson, if convicted. CNN has reached out to Robinson’s attorney for comment.

Here’s what we know about the evidence authorities have assembled as they build their case against Robinson.

A string of confessions

Robinson appeared to confess to the shooting multiple times, in texts with his partner; in messages with friends on Discord; in conversations with his family; and to a family friend who was a former sheriff’s deputy.

Robinson’s partner, with whom he shared an apartment, shared their text messages with police, according to charging documents released by Utah County officials.

On September 10, Robinson allegedly sent a message to his partner instructing them to “drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard.”

Under the suspect’s keyboard, his partner found a note reading, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it,” according to police, who said they found a photo of the note.

In subsequent messages to his partner, Robinson seemed to confirm he had shot Kirk and said he “had enough of his hatred.” He said he had planned the attack for over a week and discussed his plans to recover the rifle from where he left it. And he referenced the bullets he had engraved with messages pulled from internet and video gaming jargon, describing them as “mostly a big meme.”

He also instructed his partner to “delete this exchange” and deny media interviews and said he planned to turn himself in to a sheriff’s deputy.

On Discord, an online platform popular among gamers, an account attributed to Robinson also seemed to confess to the crime, according to the Washington Post.

He told a small group chat he had “bad news,” and it was “me at UVU yesterday,” the Post reported, citing sources and screenshots the Post viewed.

He told the group he would surrender shortly and thanked them for “all the good times and laughs,” the outlet said.

Robinson’s partner also showed investigators messages attributed to Robinson on Discord, in which he discussed the rifle left at the crime scene and the engraved bullets, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox previously said.

Discord has said its investigation found no evidence the suspect promoted violence or planned the attack on its platform.

Finally, Robinson confessed to his father. After Robinson’s parents recognized their son in surveillance footage released by police, his father confronted his son on the phone, according to the charging document.

Robinson “implied that he planned to take his own life” in that conversation, according to the filing. His parents convinced him to meet them at home, where he “implied that he was the shooter,” says the document.

Robinson’s father eventually convinced him to speak to a family friend, a retired deputy sheriff. Accompanied by his parents, he turned himself in peacefully at the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. The FBI says he was taken into custody on September 11 at around 10 p.m.

Rifle recovered at crime scene

Another crucial piece of evidence authorities say ties Robinson to the crime is a bolt-action rifle, discovered in a wooded area near the campus. In alleged text messages to his partner, Robinson had discussed leaving the weapon wrapped in a towel and said he hoped to recover it after the shooting.

The weapon was identified as a Mauser Model 98 .30-06 caliber bolt-action rifle equipped with a mounted scope, according to court documents. The type of rifle and rounds fired – one spent round and three unspent – were consistent with “the facts officers observed at the time of, and immediately after the shooting,” says the charging document.

“I’m worried what my old man would do if I didn’t bring back grandpas rifle … idek if it had a serial number, but it wouldn’t trace to me,” Robinson allegedly wrote in text messages to his roommate.

When police released images of the weapon, Robinson’s father texted his son, asking for a picture of the gun, according to the charging document.

“my dad wants photos of the rifle … he says grandpa wants to know who has what,” Robinson allegedly wrote to his partner. “the feds released a photo of the rifle, and it is very unique. Hes calling me rn, not answering.”

Robinson’s father told authorities the police description of the suspected murder weapon “matched a rifle that was given to his son as a gift,” according to the filing.

DNA consistent with Robinson’s found on rifle

The towel, rifle and ammunition recovered from the wooded area near the campus were sent for forensic processing, according to the charging document.

“DNA consistent with Robinson’s was found on the trigger, other parts of the rifle, the fired cartridge casing, two of the three unfired cartridges, and the towel,” reads the document.

Surveillance video shows Robinson arriving on campus, governor says

Surveillance footage from Utah Valley University shows that hours before Kirk was shot in the neck, Robinson arrived at the university in a Dodge Challenger wearing a plain maroon T-shirt, light-colored shorts, a black hat, and light-colored shoes, Cox previously said.

The FBI’s initial photos of a person of interest show a man in a different outfit: he wears sunglasses, a dark blue cap, and a black T-shirt with a large American flag and bald eagle while walking up a stairwell.

Authorities also released surveillance video showing the suspect running across a rooftop overlooking the event, jumping to the ground and then leaving the scene.

At some point after the shooting, according to a police affidavit, Robinson changed into an outfit similar to the one seen in surveillance video.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Taylor Romine, Aditi Sangal, Holmes Lybrand, John Miller, Emma Tucker, Danya Gainor, Lauren Mascarenhas, Brian Stelter, Sara Smart, and Andi Babineau contributed to this report.

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