Authorities say Charlie Kirk’s alleged murderer left behind bullet casings with antifascist messages and a plethora of gamer and Gen Z slang

Governor Spencer Cox and the FBI confirmed during their official briefings that bullet casings on the scene confirmed engraved anti-fascist slogans, akin to “Hey fascist! Catch!” accompanied by arrow symbols, and and phrases lifted from historic antifascist actions. The phrase “Bella Ciao,” an anthem of resistance from WWII Italy and a staple of latest antifascist rallies, was discovered inscribed on a number of events. “I will leave that up to you to interpret what those engravings mean,” Cox instructed reporters, including that the “Hey fascist, catch!” inscription “speaks for itself.” 

News of the inscriptions had been first shared on X on Thursday morning by political commentator Steven Crowder, citing a preliminary bulletin attributed to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Fox News Digital reported that a number of sources confirmed the veracity of the bulletin, however pressured that the data was preliminary.

Gen Z slang and meme references

Other casings were marked with distinctly Gen Z online language: one casing read “Notices bulges OwO’s this?”—a phrase associated with the furry and gaming communities as well as meme subculture from 2018 onward. “OwO” is a popular emoticon denoting cuteness or surprise and is frequently deployed in digital roleplay spaces.

The Verge reported that the casings don’t look like linked to “transgender ideology,” as some MAGA influencers have claimed within the swirl of disinformation surrounding the stunning violence. The arrow sequence, although, has a connection to video gaming, recognizably originating in a recreation known as Helldivers 2, a science-fiction narrative much like Robert Heinlein’s e-book Starship Troopers that covers fascistic themes. Developer Arrowhead has characterized the game as a satire. Several Reddit threads on Helldivers had been filled with discussions of the hyperlinks between the sport and the alleged shooter’s bullet casings, with one commenter remarking on the awkwardness of having a tattoo of the arrow sequence.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to assist with an preliminary draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the data earlier than publishing.