Investigation ties bullet-engraved messages to new trend among killers in Charlie Kirk case

A 22-year-old man, Tyler Robinson, is charged in the killing of conservative activist and media figure Charlie Kirk after authorities said he engraved messages on four bullets used in the rifle that killed him. A charging document filed Tuesday alleges that Robinson personally etched the inscriptions onto the rounds and that the messages were not produced by any business, including Kirkham’s Bullet Designs Inc., an Etsy shop that engraves messages on ammunition. Robinson appeared in court Tuesday wearing an anti-suicide vest, marking his first appearance in the case.

The case has drawn attention to a purported trend in which shooters inscribe text on ammunition in high-profile crimes. Investigators have cited the Etsy market as evidence that engraving bullets is a known practice for custom or memorial purposes, but experts warn that the practice is now being leveraged to leave a message at the crime scene itself. The arrest and details surrounding the inscriptions come as investigators and scholars discuss whether the act signals a broader shift toward notoriety-seeking violence among younger killers. The shooting has already spurred questions about how public narratives around such crimes are shaped by the physical objects left behind.

Jillian Snider, a retired New York City police officer who lectures at John Jay College, says the practice marks a new phase in how killers may try to control their story. “There’s a trend emerging here,” she said, noting that writers historically left notes after the fact, but now “they’re leaving notes on the very objects they’re using to actually kill people.” Snider pointed to earlier cases where bullets and shell casings carried messages and argued that those inscriptions can shape media coverage and public perception in real time.

Previous incidents have featured similar, though not identical, behavior. In December, shell casings bearing the words deny, defend and depose appeared at the scene of the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City street. Prosecutors later linked those inscriptions to 26-year-old Luigi Mangione, and the motive appeared tied to a campaign against perceived insurance industry practices. The episode underscored how such messages act as “breadcrumbs” for the public and investigators, potentially steering the narrative as authorities hunt for suspects. Experts say that messaging at crime scenes may be used deliberately to keep the public engaged as investigations unfold.

In late August, a different case mirrored the broader pattern: Robin Westman, 23, drew on Mangione’s playbook by inscribing ammunition with messages before opening fire at a Catholic school in Minneapolis. Westman killed two students, aged 8 and 10, wounded 14 others and three adults, then killed herself. Among the messages inscribed on her weapons were references to other mass shooters and to various political and violent slogans. Westman’s actions and online journals suggested a fixation on amplifying their thoughts in real time as the attack unfolded. While Westman did not engrave the bullets she fired, investigators found a stash of ammunition with disturbing inscriptions—an ongoing reminder of how the act of messaging can become part of a perpetrator’s public persona.

Robinson’s own inscriptions, prosecutors say, reflect a mix of meme culture and gaming language. He is accused of engraving four cartridges with phrases such as “NoTices Bulge. OWO What’s This?”—a reference to furry fandom lingo about male anatomy—and other messages meant to provoke reaction or ridicule. One spent cartridge bore the line “NoTices Bulge. OWO What’s This?” while another unspent round carried “Hey Fascist! Catch!” accompanied by arrow symbols reminiscent of moves in Helldivers 2. A third unspent cartridge included “O Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Ciao, ciao!”—the World War II-era Italian anti-fascist song—alongside other inscriptions. A third unspent cartridge bore the line “If you Read This, You Are GAY. LMAO,” a provocative line that prosecutors say reflects the suspect’s mindset and use of online slang.

Prosecutors say Robinson targeted Kirk because of his anti-LGBTQ views and because of his public advocacy in support of his beliefs. They have not disclosed whether the inscriptions were created by hand with a stylus or with a laser or other engraving device, nor have they released a visual image of the inscriptions. The case raises questions about the ways in which youthful shooters use familiar cultural formats—memes, gaming references and online vernacular—to craft a presence around violent acts and to influence the public narrative in real time.

Kirkham, a decade-long vendor of bullet engraving on Etsy, told Daily Mail that she initially feared the bullets used in Kirk’s slayings could have originated from her shop. She noted that her policy is to deactivate ammunition before engraving and that most of her orders address memorial purposes—such as bullets engraved with “I love you” or names for keepsakes, or as mini urns containing a loved one’s ashes carried on keychains or necklaces.

In interview, themes of memory and ritual recur in the business she runs, even as investigators warn of the dangerous potential for a new class of perpetrators to seek publicity through the very objects used in their crimes. Snider emphasized that while engraving on ammunition has a long history as “trench art” or novelty gifts, there are no academic studies yet on its impact in high-profile crimes. She warned that, given the public’s fascination with memes and online culture, more incidents of bullet inscriptions could emerge as a recognizable pattern among a new generation of killers who view these notes as a chance to leave a lasting, attention-grabbing imprint on the narrative surrounding an attack.