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PROVO, Utah (AP) — Prosecutors in Utah played a video clip Wednesday that provided a rare glimpse of Tyler Robinson after the defendant in the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk first turned himself in.

The video showed Robinson standing in a room at the Washington County Sheriff’s Office wearing a T-shirt and baseball cap. There was no audio, but an investigator said he spoke to Robinson that night to get his name and date of birth.

The short clip played as state District Judge Tony Graf sought to keep a weeklong preliminary hearing on track and said he wanted to give both sides time to present their cases.

Instead, much of Wednesday was consumed by arguments over whether prosecutors can play a recorded law enforcement interview with Robinson’s roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, in court.

Graf indicated he would allow prosecutors to play redacted audio of those statements Thursday. The judge will decide after the hearing if prosecutors have enough evidence to bring Robinson to trial on an aggravated murder charge in Kirk’s Sept. 10 shooting on the campus of Utah Valley University.

Robinson has not yet entered a plea and his attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence. They have, however, sought to get the death penalty taken off the table, so far unsuccessfully.

Robinson’s lawyers said they were concerned about his right to a fair trial if Twiggs’ statements were played in open court and then broadcast by media outlets. They said prosecutors would attempt to portray Twiggs’ statements about what Robinson allegedly told him as a confession from Robinson, which could bias potential jurors.

Attorneys for Kirk’s family and the media had urged the judge to make Twiggs’ statements and other evidence public.

“To not be transparent, to not be open and let the world see what happened will create doubt and distrust in the judicial system,” Kirk family lawyer Jeffrey Neiman told Graf.

Prosecutors allege Robinson sent a text to Twiggs saying he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred.”

Twiggs was interviewed twice as part of the investigation, State Bureau of Investigation Agent Brian Davis testified Wednesday. He was given immunity for the statements, meaning what Twiggs said cannot be used against him in a potential criminal case, Davis said.

DNA analysis described by expert as ‘the gold standard’

Robinson’s lawyers have questioned the reliability of DNA testing used to link the defendant to the suspected murder weapon.

A member of Tyler Robinson’s defense team interrogated a DNA analyst from the FBI about the techniques she used to connect Robinson to a towel wrapped around a rifle found at the college campus, where Kirk was shot while speaking to a large crowd.

Defense lawyer Michael Burt cast doubt on the analyst’s conclusions.

“She can’t match Mr. Robinson to the questioned samples,” Burt argued.

Forensics expert Lawrence Quarino said law enforcement agencies use “extremely reliable” tests to determine the probability that a person matches with DNA found at a crime scene.

DNA testing “is the gold standard in forensic science,” said Quarino, a professor and director of the forensic science program at Cedar Crest College in Pennsylvania.

FBI analyst Amanda Bakker said that after Twiggs provided a DNA sample for comparison, she was able to rerun her tests and attribute all of the DNA to two people.

Investigators found the towel and suspected murder weapon — a bolt-action rifle with one spent round — in a wooded area near where Kirk was shot.

DNA on the towel matched to two people, Jennifer Faumuina with the State Bureau of Investigation testified. One was Twiggs and the other was very likely Robinson, she said.

Prosecutors allege Robinson confessed in a note left for Twiggs that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.”

The defense team pushes back

Investigators say Robinson went to a rooftop near where Kirk was speaking and shot him once through the neck as the activist was taking questions from a crowd of several thousand people. Kirk was declared dead after being taken to a hospital.

Prosecutors contend the shooting endangered others at Kirk’s campus event — an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law. Robinson also faces possible sentence enhancements based on the prosecution’s claim that he targeted Kirk because of his political views.

Robinson’s defense team has pushed back on the idea that he was hostile to Kirk’s politics. Defense attorney Richard Novak sought to block prosecutors from introducing a statement describing the traditional Christian values of Turning Point USA.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump flew partway home from a NATO summit in Turkey on an old baby blue Air Force One plane instead of the new Qatari-gifted and retrofitted red, white and navy blue jet he arrived in, a surprise swap that came as the U.S. and Iran once again began trading strikes.

Trump offered little clarity on the swap, instead saying he would fly on the legacy aircraft “for old time’s sake,” and indicating that both aircraft would make a previously unscheduled stop on the way back to the United States at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, a base used by U.S. troops.

The travel switch raised fresh security questions about the new aircraft that the U.S. spent $400 million to retrofit. Images of the Qatari-gifted jet captured since its unveiling show it is not equipped with some of the same missile detection and countermeasure systems as the older jets.

Trump boarded the new jet at Mildenhall, and it promptly took off for Joint Base Andrews outside Washington after he greeted service members stationed there.

“We just landed and met up with our new Air Force One, which was sent earlier to RAF Mildenhall, so we could show the wonderful Servicemembers, as per the entire Base’s request,” the Republican president said on social media. “They were very excited.”

He said stopping at Mildenhall “was on our way back to the States from Turkey, with virtually no deviation of flightpath.”

During the flight, Trump denied to the reporters accompanying him that security concerns involving Iran were a factor in flying two planes home. Asked if he was aware of any credible threats against Air Force One by Iran, Trump brushed off the question.

“I have a threat all the time. I’m No. 1 on their list,” he said, repeating comments from earlier Wednesday that he is one of Iran’s top assassination targets.

When the reporters asked Trump if he knew why they were asked to keep their window blinds closed during the flight from Turkey to the U.K. aboard the older Air Force One, Trump replied that it probably was due to the “sleazebags over here” — an apparent reference to Iran. He said he was not asked to close the window blinds in his compartment. Iran and Turkey share a border.

New Air Force One doesn’t have same security measures

The swap was also announced less than a day after the U.S. military conducted a series of large strikes in Iran in retaliation for its attacks on merchant shipping in the region, and before a new series of strikes on Wednesday.

Trump first announced in a social media post that the gleaming new plane he had proudly shown off a day earlier would instead visit the U.K. base on the way home so military members could “tour the Aircraft.” Trump said he instead would be flying home in an older plane previously used as Air Force One.

When asked later during a news conference if security concerns had played a role in the switch, Trump didn’t directly answer but said that when it came to Iran, he was “No. 1 on the list for killing.”

When another reporter followed up, Trump said he’d be “going home by normal methods” while the new plane would be shown off to troops.

When asked if the missing countermeasures systems played a role in the jet being swapped out, the U.S. Air Force directed questions to the White House.

“The new Air Force One is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff,” spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement. “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal — including distraction and misdirection — to address those threats.”

Plane’s transponder was turned off for some of the flight

Trump departed Turkey aboard one of the older Boeing VC-25As that have carried presidents for 3 1/2 decades. Consumer flight trackers were unable to monitor its transponder early in the flight after takeoff, suggesting it had been temporarily disabled by the crew — a security measure used when ferrying the president to and from high-risk environments like war zones, not a major NATO ally hosting a long-scheduled summit.

Other world leaders’ flights departed with trackable transponders, including those from Germany and the U.K.

The luxurious Boeing 747-800 gifted by Qatar, that was modified to carry Trump, departed earlier Wednesday from Turkey and landed at RAF Mildenhall on Wednesday afternoon, flight trackers showed.

Iran has several missiles and drones in its inventory with enough range to make the roughly 800-mile (1,300-kilometer) flight from its own borders to Turkey, including some of its Shahed drones and Shahab ballistic missiles.

However, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Iran does not possess weaponry that would be capable of effectively striking England at a range of roughly 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers).

The U.S. Air Force, which oversees the running of the fleet of aircraft used by every president, had previously said that they had to prioritize making only some of the necessary upgrades and changes in order to deliver the Qatari jet — also known as the “bridge” aircraft — into service.

The Air Force argued that the rapid conversion of the jet was done “without accepting any risk regarding security, safety, or secure communications,” but did concede that “several highly complex engineering modifications required for the final (Air Force One aircraft) were intentionally excluded from the Bridge aircraft.”

Jeremiah Gertler, a senior analyst for Teal Group, an aviation and defense consulting firm, previously told The Associated Press that the absence of countermeasure systems, as well as a seemingly smaller number of communications antennas, suggested that the Qatari jet was better suited to only work as a domestic aircraft.

Trump’s first flight on the new Qatari jet was to North Dakota last week.

The original Air Force One planes were built from scratch near the end of the Cold War and they were hardened against the effects of a nuclear blast and included a range of security features, such as anti-missile countermeasures and an onboard operating room.

The jets are also equipped with air-to-air refueling capabilities for contingencies, though it has never been utilized with a president on board.

The pair of Boeing jets that are currently being modified to act as the permanent upgrades to the Air Force One jets have been delayed, and are expected to be delivered in 2028.

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Associated Press writers Zeke Miller and Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

HOUSTON (AP) — A Mexican national fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Houston had no criminal convictions during his decades living in the U.S. and was driving a crew to a homebuilding site when he was killed, his family and a Texas congresswoman said Wednesday.

Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was working toward securing legal status in the U.S. and knew what to do if stopped by ICE, his son said.

Federal officials said they were stopping the vehicle in an immigration enforcement operation. Ronaldo Salgado said his father may have been scared that the people in unmarked vehicles were coming to steal the tools he had used for 35 years to build homes so he could send his three American sons to college.

“He did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be reduced to a headline of Mexican man shot and killed by ICE. He deserved to live a quiet life as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a husband, a father and a job creator for dozens of men who also wanted the American dream,” Salgado said during a news conference.

The shooting happened Tuesday in Magnolia Park, a neighborhood that has been a hub for Houston’s Mexican American community for a century. On Wednesday night, hundreds of people marched through the neighborhood chanting “ICE out of Houston!”

Federal officials say their vehicle was rammed but don’t provide evidence

Salgado Araujo was shot after he ignored commands and attempted to ram an officer who fired his weapon in self-defense, the Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday. ICE officers were targeting him because he was living in the country without legal permission, according to the department, which oversees ICE. The man’s car struck an ICE vehicle, the department added.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia said Salgado Araujo had no criminal convictions.

Houston firefighters said he was shot in the abdomen. He died at a hospital.

Three other men appeared to be detained as Salgado Araujo lay moaning on the ground, according to his son, who said one of them was his uncle.

Daniel Tirado was one of the other men in the van and called his wife briefly to say they were being followed, Tirado’s stepdaughter Juana Degollado told The Associated Press.

“What he remembers is that an ICE agent shot Lorenzo and the van door was closed,” Degollado said.

Tirado wasn’t able to contact his family until Wednesday morning, and the call lasted only five minutes, his stepdaughter said. They haven’t been able to get additional information from ICE or the FBI.

Jose Rojas was also detained, according to his stepdaughter Griselda Silva. The 51-year-old Mexican national had lived in the U.S. for decades without legal status or a criminal record, she said.

ICE has not released the names of the people detained.

Federal officials have not released video or images of the shooting or the vehicles. Salgado on Tuesday joined civil rights groups and Democratic officials in urging federal authorities to release all the footage and other information it has on the shooting.

In several other shootings involving federal officers, initial descriptions by immigration officials have sometimes been contradicted later by video evidence.

Civil rights groups say ICE can’t be trusted with the investigation

The federal crackdown has created a country where officers think they can “shoot and explain later,” League of United Latin American Citizens President Roman Palomares said.

The league offered a $5,000 reward for information and videos from witnesses. Ronaldo Salgado and several civil rights organizations called for an independent investigation. Some begged anyone with videos to not turn them over to ICE.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said Salgado Araujo’s family and the community deserve the truth, but federal authorities are exclusively handling the investigation.

ICE and DHS representatives have not responded to repeated requests for additional comment Wednesday.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin took over the department in March aiming to keep it away from the controversies that marked the tenure of his predecessor, Kristi Noem.

The shooting was at least the eighth death resulting from an encounter with federal immigration officers since the start of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

Son says his father worked hard for decades

Ronaldo Salgado said his mother was told something bad had happened to his dad around 7 a.m. Tuesday. After frantically looking for him at his job site and finding his empty van, he saw a video.

“I recognized him, not from his appearance but from his voice crying for help as he lay on the street,” Salgado said.

Salgado Araujo met his wife as a teenager in Mexico. She made his lunch before he left for the day. He would listen to music and pet his dog on his porch, Salgado said.

Salgado said his dad had started the process of obtaining his work permit.

“We dotted every I, crossed every T, filled every document, attended every appointment,” Salgado said. “He was close to obtaining his legal status.”

Salgado Araujo had biometric scan and fingerprints done earlier this year and had carefully studied what to do if ICE pulled him over.

“Had my father seen an emblem of ICE or an emblem that says anything about a law enforcement agency, my father would have complied,” his son said.

Crowd marches in Houston, and Mexico’s president criticizes the killing

On Wednesday night, a large crowd marched through the city’s streets, with some waving Mexican flags or holding a banner that said “Abolish ICE,” while others held signs with Salgado Araujo’s face on it.

The crowd started feet from where Salgado Araujo was shot and held a ceremony in his memory and prayer. They also filmed a video for his family of the crowd chanting, “You’re not alone!” Garcia announced that she and other lawmakers sent a letter Wednesday to DHS demanding answers.

Meanwhile, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said Wednesday that the country is “preparing legal measures” over the killing of Salgado Araujo because “we cannot allow the mistreatment of our brothers and sisters in the United States.”

In April, Sheinbaum expressed concern about the deaths of Mexican nationals in U.S. immigration detention, saying her government would support lawsuits filed by detainees over poor conditions or by the families of those who died. She raised the detainees’ deaths to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and said she was considering an appeal to the United Nations.

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Brook reported from New Orleans and Collins from Columbia, South Carolina. Associated Press reporters Hallie Golden in Seattle; Gisela Salomon in Miami; Rebecca Santana in Washington, D.C.; and Ryan J. Foley in Omaha contributed.

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This story has been corrected to show Sheinbaum’s comments about possibly approaching the U.N. were made in April.

NEW YORK (AP) — The streets around a midtown Manhattan high-rise where buckled columns forced evacuations gradually returned to life Wednesday, as roads reopened, residents and hotel guests were allowed back into nearby buildings, and workers shored up the damage.

After crews worked through the night to stabilize a section of the building where beams had buckled and floors had sagged, Mayor Zohran Mamdani sought to reassure wary New Yorkers, saying no more movement had been detected in the massive office-to-apartment conversion project at Pfizer’s former headquarters near Grand Central Terminal.

But several other nearby buildings remained off-limits, and the city will conduct a broader inquiry into what went wrong and what can be done to prevent a more devastating development such as a collapse, the mayor vowed.

“As soon as we answer the emergency questions around safety in this moment, we are going to be conducting a full investigation as to how we got to this point,” Mamdani said. “Because this is not a necessary consequence of an office to residential conversion. This, however, is clearly a breakdown in that process.”

Buckled columns and sagging floors triggered collapse concerns

Authorities responding to emergency calls at the building discovered two mangled support columns on the 21st floor as well as multiple cracks and slumping floors early Tuesday, triggering mass evacuations and street closures in a bustling area not far from the Grand Central transit hub and the Chrysler Building.

In the initial hours, officials believed the steel-framed building, which was empty other than the workers, wasn’t at risk of a total collapse, but “more of a localized collapse,” as Fire Chief John Esposito described it.

On-site contractors were eventually allowed to reenter the building late Tuesday to do emergency repairs after city officials conducted a floor-by-floor inspection.

The renovation project is billed as the largest office-to-residential conversion in the city’s history, creating some 1,600 units of housing by adding more than a dozen stories atop one tower in the complex and redesigning the other. Plans also call for adding roughly 100,000 square feet (9,300 square meters) of amenities, including a rooftop pool, a fitness center, ground floor retail and offices.

Pfizer, which was originally founded in Brooklyn in 1849, established its headquarters in the building in 1961. A massive mosaic of metal and tile honoring ancient and modern figures in medicine was displayed prominently in the high glass-windowed lobby. The pharmaceutical giant moved out in 2023 after opening a new office near Penn Station, leaving the property vacant.

Spokespersons for MetroLoft, the project developer, didn’t respond to requests for comment Wednesday but have previously voiced optimism that the project could resume quickly as they’ve stressed that the building is not at risk of collapse.

Nathan Berman, the firm’s founder, acknowledged in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, though, that the added weight from widening the top 15 or so floors of the building likely caused the damage.

Residents and hotel guests return as evacuation orders are lifted

Sally Grant and Margaret Clark were among those Wednesday waiting to be let back into the Hampton Inn near the damaged building.

They had traveled from Scotland to see Bon Jovi perform at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday but were evacuated and told to leave their belongings, including their credit cards, passports and medication.

“They could have given us five minutes to grab our belongings, you know, instead of just saying, ‘Everybody out, everybody out,’” Clark said. “We’ve been left with nothing. We slept in the streets last night. The police wouldn’t help us. It’s been awful. Absolutely it’s ruined our holiday.”

There were signs of things returning to normal Wednesday on the streets surrounding the construction site, with people walking dogs, pushing strollers and riding bikes.

Some streets remained closed for much of the day while gawkers paused to take photos of the now-infamous high-rise. Unionized construction workers staged a protest — complete with a large inflatable rat — slamming the building’s developers for using non-union labor.

Elinor Ruskin, 94, was among those redirected by police after trying to get through a closed block in the morning. She took it in stride.

“These things happen. I don’t know if they will catch the mistake or what they will do,” she said. “Anyway, you know, this is New York City.”

More thorough inquiry to come as repairs are ongoing

Temporary shoring and beams were installed throughout the 37-story building as crews made their way to the top.

Photos shared on social media by the city’s Department of Buildings showed multiple steel rods inserted side-by-side next to one badly bent column.

The department said the emergency work is being supervised by the owner’s engineer and an independent, third-party engineering firm hired by the owner.

Once the emergency repairs are complete, Mamdani said city building officials will conduct a “rigorous assessment” to ensure the plans and the site are fully compliant with all codes before any non-emergency work proceeds.

New York, along with other major cities, has for years been pursuing ambitious overhauls to transform underused office space into residential buildings, in part to help struggling business districts and take strain off tight housing markets in need of more apartments.

Mamdani, a Democrat, told reporters Wednesday that he considers the conversions “part of our answer to the housing crisis,” but he added that the projects must be done “safely and in a way that is fully accountable.”

Real estate expert thinks project will still find tenants

Joshua Harris, director of Fordham University’s Real Estate Institute, said it remains to be seen whether the building’s problems were caused by faulty engineering, a failure to follow design plans or even hidden flaws in the original building’s construction. It also remains to be seen whether the developers have the financing to absorb the cost of the delays and added expenses to make the needed fixes, he said.

What is almost certain, Harris said, is that the hulking tower, if completed, would still find willing tenants, given its prime location and the nearly unquenchable demand for housing in New York City.

“There’s no real stigmatization from a death or something that was like tragic,” he said. “It’s probably going to be one of the safest buildings out there when it’s done. You’re not going to cut any corners at this point. There’s too much attention on it.”

Walking near the high-rise Wednesday, Sabrina DeRizzio wondered why developers keep trying to turn outdated office towers into modern housing, as she lives in one herself.

“It’s not the best,” she said of her building, adding that it’s impossible to hang anything on the concrete walls and the unit never feels properly insulated. “The infrastructure is just not the same.”

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This story was updated to correct the name of Grand Central Terminal.

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Associated Press video journalist Ted Shaffrey in New York contributed to this story.

NEW YORK (AP) — Nearly 1,000 people in Michigan have been diagnosed with a parasitic infection that can cause weeks of watery diarrhea, making it the largest such outbreak in state history and one of the nation’s largest in years.

No deaths have been reported and the source of the cyclospora infections hasn’t been identified. Meanwhile, investigations into similar illnesses have been going on in 28 other states, including in Ohio, where people just across the Michigan border are also becoming sick.

Michigan officials first announced the outbreak last week, when they were aware of more than 170 cases — all in the southeastern corner of the state — since June 22. Michigan usually identifies only about 50 cases each year.

On Wednesday, the state reported the number had grown to 992, including about 40 hospitalizations. Just across the state line, Lucas County, Ohio, reported 306 cases as of Wednesday. Northwest Ohio has seen more than 500 cases.

Cyclospora surges can be tricky to investigate, and food poisoning sources can be hard to establish. But “there is clearly a linked outbreak happening right now,” Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan’s chief medical executive, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Here’s what to know about the current situation:

What is cyclospora?

Cyclospora is a microscopic, spherical parasite that commonly causes watery diarrhea “with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements,” according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The illness, called cyclosporiasis, is not usually life threatening and is typically treated with antibiotics. Outbreaks tend to occur most often in the late spring and summer.

The heat-loving parasite infects the bowels and spreads through feces. In the past, people have been infected by consuming fruits or vegetables that were exposed to feces-contaminated irrigation water.

It’s less common than a number of other kinds of foodborne illnesses, including salmonella and E. coli. For years, few U.S. cyclospora outbreaks were reported each year. But the number started rising about a decade ago, with a particularly notable spike in 2018 and 2019. Experts attribute the increases to climate change and better detection.

How does this outbreak compare to previous ones in the US?

Comprehensive data on cyclospora outbreaks is lacking. But available information shows only a small number of documented outbreaks in the last 20 years have surpassed 1,000 cases. That short list includes a 1997 outbreak tied to Guatemalan raspberries that sickened more than 1,000 in the U.S. and Canada, and a 2019 outbreak linked to Mexican basil that sickened more than 2,400.

There are several reasons it’s challenging to know the exact toll, said Melanie Firestone, a University of Minnesota foodborne illness researcher. Some tests used to check for types of food poisoning are not geared to detect cyclospora, “so there is a lot of underreporting when it comes to this,” she said.

Other challenges: Technicians aren’t able to grow the parasite in labs, making it hard to draw evidence from contaminated produce. And it can be hard to figure out what food sick people had in common, because sometimes it’s a single ingredient that might be common in multiple recipes — like basil or cilantro.

Also, it’s possible that food distributors may channel contaminated foods to both grocery stores and restaurants, making it hard to discern where tainted food came from. Investigations can take months and sometimes never find a clear source.

What’s the current situation?

Cases seem to be surging in and around southeastern Michigan. But it’s not considered a national health emergency.

There’s no evidence that the parasite has evolved to become more infectious, said Dianna Blau, the CDC’s acting parasitic diseases branch chief.

Thousands of cyclospora illnesses are reported in the U.S. each year and it’s not yet clear how unusual this year will be, she added. That said, the case total so far is four times higher than at the same point last year, according to current CDC national data, which lags dramatically from what’s being reported by the states.

Michigan appears to be suffering the worst of it, but the state’s aggressiveness in investigating and reporting cases may be “part of the reason why this looks like a Michigan problem,” Bagdasarian said.

How can you protect yourself from cyclospora?

People who have diarrhea that hasn’t gone away on its own within a few days should see a health provider and discuss the possibility of cyclospora, officials say.

The best way to prevent infection with a parasite is to avoid food or water that may have been contaminated.

Fresh produce should be thoroughly washed before being eaten. But be aware that cyclospora can really stick to some foods, so washing may not eliminate the risk of infection.

As Michigan officials investigate the potential source, they recommend consumers purchase whole heads of lettuce rather than prewashed, bagged lettuce or salad mixes, and to remove the outer two to three leaves before washing the remaining leaves under running water.

They also say to cook vegetables when possible.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.