Charlie Kirk Shooting Suspect: Ammo Engraved With Antifascist Symbols, Gamer Codes, And Meme References

The suspect of the Conservative activist Charlie Kirk shooting, Tyler James Robinson, left behind ammunition engraved with a variety of messages, officials said on Friday. Messages with references to antifascist symbols and lingos of video games were found inscribed on unfired cartridges lodged in the gun that was allegedly used to kill Kirk. 

Utah Governor Spencer Cox, at a news conference announcing the arrest of the suspect said that the messages employed the flippant, sarcastic, in-jokey chatter often found on online message boards and in-game chats, The New York Times reported. 

“Hey fascist! Catch! ↑ → ↓↓↓,” read one such engraving which is an apparent reference to a sequence of controller moves that unleashes bombs in the popular video game Helldivers 2. The game, launched in early 2024 had indications of it being presented as a satire to fascism.

Cox also referred to engravings that contained obscure references. On the fired cartridges, a message read "Notices bulges OwO what’s this?” The phrase is apparently a reference to a meme about online role-play communities.

One of the casing read “Bella Ciao,” a probable reference to an Italian song adopted by the antifascist resistance during World War II. Some other engraved messages appeared relatively straightforward like “Hey fascist! Catch!” Cox claimed that the message clearly portrayed the gunman’s intent and said that “I think that speaks for itself,” The New York Times reported. 

Robinson has reportedly confessed to his family about shooting Kirk. Robinson is a third-year student in the electrical apprenticeship program at Dixie Technical College in Washington county, said a statement from the Utah system of higher education.