In a tragic and senseless event, a man reported to be a longtime Nazi-sympathizer carried out a deadly attack at Mexico’s Teotihuacán pyramids. At the popular tourist destination and UNESCO heritage site, one visitor was fatally shot, while 13 others were injured.
Taking place on April 20, 27-year-old Julio César Jasso Ramirez opened fire with what has been identified as likely a Smith & Wesson Model 32 “Terrier” .38 revolver.
The date of the attack is both the birthday of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and the anniversary of the Columbine school attack.
The perpetrator, originally from Mexico City, reportedly took his own life at the scene.
The name of the dead victim, a Canadian woman, has not yet been officially released. Others injured include citizens of Brazil, Colombia, Russia, and the United States.
Apparent Extremist Connections
Ramirez has been reported by Mexican authorities to have posted images of himself on social media making the Sieg Heil, or Nazi salute—behavior police say he had shown since the age of 17.
Images shared from the scene show a framed artificially generated image of Ramirez and the two perpetrators of the 1999 Colorado Columbine High School shooting that cost 13 people their lives. In the generated image, Ramirez wears a shirt reading “Disconnect & Self Destruct,” the same as he wore while carrying out the attack, according to Mexican authorities.
A framed picture found at the scene of the Teotihuacán shooting showing an AI-generated image of the two perpetrators of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting (left and center) and Julio César Jasso Ramirez (right).
Mexican authorities indicate that Ramirez had been posting other AI generated images of himself and individuals connected to mass murder.
Images and Video Spread Quickly
Footage of the shooting has circulated quickly online. Recorded by bystanders at the scene, these videos show a man in a black face mask and a gray plaid shirt pacing at the top of the Pyramid of the Moon, one of the most famous structures at the Teotihuacán archaeological site. In one hand he holds what appears to be a pistol.
The gunman checks a black bag and walks over to a group of people laying on the ground. Witnesses told reporters that the perpetrator had taken people hostage.
He fires several shots down toward them as well as up in the air.
Other video of the incident shows people at the foot of the pyramid taking shelter or fleeing. A witness to the shooting indicated hearing up to “20 shots.”
Details about the incident and the attacker’s motives are still emerging, but the presence of a portrait of the Columbine attackers signals a possible relationship with an online subculture previously reported on by the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, dubbed the “True Crime Community” (TCC), a social community that glorifies, worships, and seeks to inspire the next mass shooter.
Direct ties between Ramirez and the TCC have not been established, but the community has a particular fascination with the Columbine killings. Past attackers, including Desmond Holly, who injured two students at a Colorado high school with a handgun before taking his own life in September 2025, emulate aspects of the perpetrators attack, including their clothes.
The shirt worn by Ramirez into the attack, and in the generated image he carried with him, read “Disconnect and Self-Destroy,” a reference to a song by the band A Perfect Circle. This song is reportedly associated to one of the Columbine attackers by the TCC.
The TCC is not a group, but a fandom made up of individuals engaged with podcasts, articles, and web forums. It has a significant presence on every major social media platform including TikTok, Reddit, and X.
The online culture surrounding the TCC has increasingly intersected with real-world violence. There has been little study of the TCC’s relationship to extremism, but it has nonetheless been connected to numerous attacks over the past two years.
In total, there were a minimum of 22 TCC-linked attacks and plots that took place between 2024-2026, several of which included perpetrators who left behind messages of support for past far-right extremist killers.
This is a developing story: Read our previous coverage of the True Crime Community
