Charlie Kirk’s Security Head Gives In-Depth Interview

It’s been over two months since conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated while speaking at a public event in Utah, and while the investigation into his death continues, the internet has exploded with conspiracy theories — some of which are now being directly addressed by those who were closest to the scene.

Brian Harpole, the former head of Kirk’s security detail, recently appeared on The Shawn Ryan Show to break his silence and push back against a flood of rumors that have surfaced online. Harpole led Kirk’s protection team the day the 31-year-old Turning Point USA founder was shot and killed during a student Q&A session on September 10. As thousands watched in person and online, a gunman allegedly opened fire, striking Kirk in the neck. He later died at a nearby hospital.

In the wake of the shocking event, social media lit up with amateur video breakdowns, frame-by-frame analyses, and bold claims about what “really happened.” Among the most viral theories was the idea that Kirk’s own security team had allegedly used “suspicious” hand signals moments before the shot rang out — suggesting, without evidence, that they may have had prior knowledge of the attack.

But Harpole says that theory just doesn’t add up.

He explained that his team didn’t use hand signals at all, saying any communication would’ve happened over earpieces — not through gestures. “If we needed to relay a message, then we’d on comms,” he told Ryan, adding that any movement that looked like someone adjusting a hat or rolling up sleeves wasn’t some secret signal, just normal behavior.

Harpole even joked about how absurd some of the speculation has become. “We’re not gonna use a hand signal that can be confused with a man scratching his a**,” he said.

One particular guard, Frank Turek, came under scrutiny online after video showed him adjusting his hat shortly before the shooting. But Harpole dismissed the idea that this was a signal of any kind. “So he touched his hat,” he said. “There were a line of people in the front and other people that did all kinda things, everybody’s subject to that.”

Still, Harpole admitted he’s struggling with his own feelings about the day. “I did not trust my own eyes, ears, what I was reading, what I was watching,” he said, noting how quickly information got twisted after the attack. While he doesn’t buy into the more extreme theories, like the one that allegedly blamed Kirk’s wife Erika, he acknowledged that the chaos and the speed of speculation made the search for truth much harder. “A lot of people have sensationalized this, and that is a real shame,” he said. “It makes it impossible to find the truth.”