'Bombshell' claim in Charlie Kirk murder trial sparks online frenzy: 'What is going on?'

The attorneys for the man accused of assassinating right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk last year lobbed a “bombshell” claim in court on Friday, the Daily Mail reported Monday, and one that sparked an online frenzy and fueled speculation about the case.

“I am NOT a conspiracy theorist but [what the f---] is going on here?” asked prominent liberal political commentator Joanne Carducci in a social media post on X to her more than 1 million followers.

According to the Daily Mail, attorneys for Tyler Robinson – the man charged with killing Kirk last September at Utah University – claimed in court Friday that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was “unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr. Robinson.”

The claim, which Robinson’s attorneys presumably made to cast doubt that their client was Kirk’s killer, only added fuel to the widespread conspiracy theories surrounding Kirk’s assassination, theories that have already sparked a prolonged MAGA civil war.

“Um. What?” wrote X user “The Maine Wonk,” a prominent liberal political commentator in a social media post to their more than 115,000 followers.

Perhaps the most prominent promoter of conspiracy theories surrounding Kirk’s assassination has been right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who has suggested, without evidence, that Israel may have played a role in Kirk’s killing – a claim that gained enough traction to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to issue a statement refuting the allegation.

Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) also reacted to the Daily Mail’s reporting, suggesting that the reporting may have compelled Washington County Sheriff Nate Brooksby – who was at the “center” of Robinson’s capture – to resign on Monday after serving in law enforcement for three decades.