False and misleading claims flooded social media in the two days it took officials to arrest and publicly identify 22-year-old Tyler Robinson as the suspect in Wednesday's assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University.

The reaction followed a pattern of misinformation and conspiracy theories that often come after breaking news events, when facts can be fluid. Those kinds of posts appeared within hours of the shooting, with some of the earliest incorrectly identifying the gunman before officials released information about a suspect. Thursday and Friday saw more claims, including old videos and photos presented as recent footage of the shooter and erroneous reporting on Robinson's background.

Here's a look at the facts.

Claim: Robinson is a registered Republican.

The facts: This is false. Utah records show Robinson was registered as a voter, but not affiliated with either political party. His voter status is inactive, meaning he did not vote in two regular general elections after receiving a notice from his county clerk. According to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Robinson's family said he became "more political in recent years" and criticized Kirk, mentioning that he was due to appear at an event in Utah and saying "Kirk was full of hate and spreading hate." Cox said ammunition found at the scene was engraved with taunting, anti-fascist and meme culture messaging.

Claim: Robinson is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

The facts: This...

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