THE FBI is reportedly investigating the “Armed Queers” group over the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Detectives are looking into if suspected sniper Tyler Robinson, 22, had links to the pro-gun socialist group after their founder allegedly urged violence across Utah.
Ermiya Fanaeian, 25, is reportedly under investigation by the FBI after she founded the Armed Queers SLC group[/caption]
Ms Fanaeian’s online posts are believed to be at the heart of the investigation, according to a source[/caption]
Charlie Kirk’s suspected assassin Tyler Robinson makes his first appearance at Utah County Justice Court[/caption]
Armed Queers SLC is a group based in Salt Lake City – less than an hours drive from Utah Valley University where Kirk was killed on September 10.
It’s leader has been identified as a radical transgender political organiser with ties to communist politics, according to the New York Post.
Ermiya Fanaeian, 25, is reportedly under investigation by the FBI as they continue to search for any leads related to why Robinson fired a fatal bullet at Kirk.
American politician and Air Force veteran Anna Paulina Luna confirmed the Armed Queers SLC was under FBI investigation.
The group had tried to completely scrub its online presence in the days after Kirk was assassinated, according to multiple sources.
But a law enforcement source told The Post that all open-source information from the group in recent years has been downloaded and handed over to the FBI.
Ms Fanaeian’s online posts are believed to be at the heart of the investigation, according to the source.
Her Instagram bio was filled with images of her holding guns with the bio on her page reading: “Revolution + Trans liberation in our lifetime!”
She has also advocated for violence to achieve the goals of multiple LGBTQ groups in the US.
Ms Fanaeian once cited the Stonewall Riots as an example of positive violence as she held a TV interview at the University of Utah.
In resurfaced footage she said: “Sometimes violence, protest, and riots and those kinds of loud rebellions must take place for tangible change.”
It has now been confirmed that Mr Robinson was living with his transgender partner at the time of the assassination.
The Sun revealed on Saturday that he had been seen kissing his boyfriend two weeks before the shooting.
There is no suggestion Ms Fanaeian had any influence over Robinson’s alleged actions.
A Utah State Department official confirmed to The Post that any ties to the organisation are being “completely severed and dismantled”.
They added: “We are taking aggressive action to ensure that any implementor that has any relationship whatsoever with this radical organization is completely cut off from any State Department engagement.”
Ms Fanaeian founded Armed Queers SLC in 2023 but her political background dates back for some time.
In April 2019, she was called onstage by then-presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren at a campaign event in Salt Lake City.
Ms Fanaeian founded Armed Queers SLC in 2023[/caption]
In September 2023, Armed Queers SLC used this poster to promote a lecture at the University of Utah[/caption]
Charlie Kirk was shot dead on September 10[/caption]
A year later she started the Salt Lake City chapter of the Pink Pistols, a national organization “whose mission is to arm LGBTQ people”, according to Utah’s university radio station KUER.
Ms Fanaeian told the broadcaster she owned an AR-15 during the interview.
She said: “I used to think that guns were a scary thing.
“Back then, I would have agreed with Joe Biden’s assertion to take everyone’s AR-15s away. And now I own one.”
The Pink Pistols would cease any connection to Ms Fanaeian just a year later.
The group made a statement earlier this week following several reports surrounding Ms Fanaeian.
It read: “While initially welcomed, she began using the Pink Pistols name to promote broader political issues.
“Violating our rule that we are a single-issue organisation devoted solely to the safe, legal, and responsible use of firearms by the queer community.”
Ms Fanaeian’s u-turn on gun laws would also become a key part of her campaigns with Armed Queers SLC.
In September 2023, she hosted a lecture on “queer resistance” at the University of Utah.
The event had been promoted through disturbing flyers showing a young woman brandishing an AK-47 while having two ammo belts strapped to her chest.
The poster also had the words “agitage, educate, organise” on it.
Timeline of Charlie Kirk shooting
Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in the neck while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, September 10.
Tuesday, September 9
8:29 am MDT – Shooter arrives on the Utah Valley University campus, as seen in surveillance videos.
Wednesday, September 10
11:52 am – The shooter, described as a college-age individual, arrives on campus before maneuvering onto a rooftop.
12:00 pm – Charlie Kirk is scheduled to host a debate in the UVU Fountain Courtyard.
12:10 pm – A shot is fired at Kirk from 200 yards away and hits him in the neck. The event is immediately evacuated and a man is taken into custody.
1:02 pm – President Donald Trump posts a call to pray for Kirk on Truth Social.
1:37 pm – UVU closes campus, cancels classes, and tells students to leave campus immediately.
1:50 pm – Officials confirm Kirk is in critical condition to the Associated Press.
2:40 pm – Trump confirms Kirk has died, hailing him “great, legendary” in a post on Truth Social.
4:21 pm FBI Director Kash Patel shares on X that the ‘subject for the horrific shooting’ is in custody.
4:30 pm – Utah Governor Spencer Cox, speaking at a press conference, brands Kirk’s death a ‘political assassination. Cox adds there is a ‘person of interest’ in custody and a man arrested earlier has been released.
7:59 pm – Patel, the FBI director, confirmed a second subject taken into custody in connection with Kirk’s shooting was released after being interrogated by law enforcement.
Thursday, September 11
7:15 am – Officials hold a press conference where they announce they have “good video” of the suspect and they recovered the “high-action bolt rifle” in the nearby woods.
9:55 am – Visuals of the suspect are released as officials ask for the public’s help in identifying the individual in the photos.
10:44 am – FBI offers a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of anyone involved in Kirk’s assassination.
10:00 pm – Tyler Robinson is arrested on Thursday night in St. George, Utah, after his dad turned him in. He’s booked into the Utah County Jail.
Friday, September 12
6:00 am – Trump announces a suspect was in custody during an appearance on Fox & Friends. “I think, with a high degree of certainty, we have him,” the president said.
7:30 am – A press conference is held with FBI and Utah government officials, including Cox and Patel, where the Utah governor confirmed, “We got him.” The suspect is identified as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson from Utah.
It comes as Donald Trump vowed to designate Antifa – an anti-fascist group – a “major terrorist organisation”.
The US President described the group as a “sick, dangerous, radical left disaster” as he ranted on Truth Social while on a state visit to the UK.
One of the main reasons for Trump’s firm condemnation of the anti-fascist group is the murder of his friend and political activist Kirk.
The MAGA ally was shot dead by a sniper as he held an event at a university campus in Utah.
Investigators believe the suspected killer, Robinson, held similar views to Antifa after an engraving on one of his bullets read: “Hey fascist, catch.”
Authorities have labelled Kirk’s tragic death a political assassination.
Kirk was known as a combative figure who enjoyed debating with people all across the US no matter their views[/caption]
Donald Trump has vowed to designate Antifa – an anti-fascist group – a ‘major terrorist organisation’[/caption]
