Charlie Kirk's wife is 'absolutely devastated', says Trump as he reveals he will attend funeral

The US President revealed he has spoken to the wife of his close ally who was assassinated as he spoke to college students at an event at Utah Valley University.

Speaking to reporters from the South Lawn of the White House today, President Trump confirmed he had spoken to Erika Kirk.

He said: “I spoke to Erika, his wife. And we had a long talk. And she’s devastated. She is absolutely devastated, as you can imagine."

Kirk and his wife began dating in 2019 and married in 2021. They share two children together.

President Trump confirmed he will be attending Kirk's funeral, which he believes will take place in Arizona next weekend.

"I think I have an obligation to do it," he said.

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Trump was also asked about his own safety but said he is "not really" concerned.

"I'm really concerned for our country. We have a great country, but a radical left group of lunatics out there," he said. "We're going to get that problem solved."

The President had strong words about the gunman, who is currently still on the run, calling him "an animal".

Investigators released the first images of a "person of interest" in the hunt for the shooter on Thursday afternoon.

The images show a person wearing a black baseball cap, black long-sleeved shirt, black trousers and sunglasses.

FBI officials in the Salt Lake City office announced a $100,000 (£73,000) reward in exchange for information leading to the identification of the attacker.

Father-of-two Kirk was shot in the neck 20 minutes into the student-sponsored event in Utah.

Kirk, who was known for holding outdoor debates on campuses across the US, was responding to a question from an audience member about mass shootings when a shot rang out.

Graphic footage shared online shows Kirk sustained a serious injury to his neck. Spectators can be seen screaming and running away after the shot was fired.

He was rushed away to hospital, but hours later it was announced that he had died from his injuries.

Kirk was a popular podcaster, political activist and ally of Trump, rallying younger people to join the MAGA movement.

The 31-year-old bolstered the Republican party's get-out-to-vote drive in the 2024 US election based on the theory that there were thousands of Trump supporters who rarely vote, but could be persuaded to back him.

Kirk was also co-founder and chief executive of the youth right-wing organisation Turning Point USA.

Turning Point UK has said its activists will gather on Friday evening by the Montgomery Statue in Whitehall and called on others to "join us in remembering Charlie".