Digital sleuths misidentify Charlie Kirk killer
A 77-year-old retiree living in Toronto, Canada, has been targeted by amateur internet sleuths in the hunt to find the shooter responsible for the murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
Image by Getty/The Salt Lake Tribune
A 77-year-old retiree living in Toronto, Canada, has been targeted by amateur internet sleuths in the hunt to find the shooter responsible for the murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
Controversial right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot on a college campus in Utah as the conservative influencer was talking about gun violence.
While the shooter is still at large and a manhunt for the killer is underway, internet sleuths have taken to social media to locate the person behind the murder.
But the problem with internet sleuths or amateur digital detectives is that they tend to bark up the wrong tree, and can even derail criminal investigations.
This is what happened when Michael Mallinson, a 77-year-old retired banker from Toronto, Canada, found that social media users and internet detectives had associated him with Kirk’s murder.
Face of a killer
undefined 🇬🇧🇮🇱🇺🇦🇺🇲 🇶🇦⚔️🇮🇱QATAR LATEST 💥 (@JerusalemDiary) September 10, 2025
Michael Mallinson. Democrat, based in Canada https://t.co/jdMeqXlqLp pic.twitter.com/RhOeU8K6UT
This was only fueled by social media users claiming that Fox News, which claimed that Michael Mallison was a Democrat out of Utah, was being carried out of the college by police.
However, The New York Times reported that the original post came from Fox 11 Reno, which isn’t affiliated with Fox News.
The twist is that an older man by the name of Michael Mallison was briefly detained following the shooting, but it wasn’t this Mallison, The New York Times reports.
Suspect in the shooting of @charliekirk11 possibly identified as @AxSpAMan
undefined The Truth Desk (@The_Truth_Desk) September 10, 2025
Watch as he was taken into custody, appearing to loose his pants pic.twitter.com/lfwPLnaDAC
The mix-up came as both Michael Mallison’s looked similar, and internet sleuths had taken to social media to figure out Mallison’s background, where they located the wrong person.
Reactions to Mallison on X were devastating, with many users hurling derogatory comments at the innocent man. Following the barrage of hate, Mallison’s X account was deactivated.
Some of the comments tell Mallison to “rot in hell,” and to “enjoy jail with the black people you love so much.”
These comments came under a picture of Mallison celebrating World AS Day, a day on which people support those suffering from axial spondyloarthritis, a chronic inflammatory disease of the spine and joints.
The image received over 269,000 views and almost 500 comments before Mallison’s account was deactivated.
The problem with digital sleuths
While there are cases, such as the Netflix original documentary “Don’t Fuck With Cats,” where digital sleuths can help aid criminal investigations, the impact of misinformation spread online by amateur detectives can be detrimental.
In this case, Mallison told The New York Times that he was shocked at how fast his picture spread across social media.
Many people will also take information they see online as gospel, meaning whatever is commonly purported online is taken at face value.
Due to the vast amount of information available online, many of us have taken up the task of being internet sleuths, which can cause more misinformation to proliferate.
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