True Crime Community
Online crime fandom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The True Crime Community (TCC) is an online fandom interested in criminals, particularly high-profile mass killers.[1] Several members of the TCC have gone on to commit their own crimes.[1] It has been linked to nihilistic violent extremism[2] and hybristophilia.[1][3]
Connection to shootings
Shooters
Perpetrators of various school shootings in Russia may have been involved in the fandom.[4] Activity associated with the TCC increased significantly in 2024.[5] In the aftermath of the April 2026 Teotihuacan shooting, some newspapers, including Milenio and El Universal, speculated about the perpetrator's alleged ties to TCC.[6][7] In June 2026, the Institute for Strategic Dialogue found that the two perpetrators of a shooting in the previous month at the Islamic Center of San Diego, though primarily motivated by neo-Nazi accelerationism and white supremacy, had online engagement with and a broader influence from nihilistic extremist online subcultures such as the TCC.[8]
Analysis
The TCC has been described by researchers as an online subculture associated with nihilistic violent extremism, rather than a coherent political ideology. Individuals linked to the community have carried out school shootings, although their attacks are generally not intended to achieve political objectives. Researchers have identified motivations including personal grievances, identity issues, mental health struggles, and a desire for recognition within the TCC community. Perpetrators of such attacks have left manifestos, social media posts, or other online material expressing admiration for previous mass shooters, alongside feelings of alienation, hopelessness, misanthropy, or dissatisfaction with their lives, society, or the future. According to research by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), at least four school shooters and five plots in 2024 were linked to TCC online communities. ISD further reported that the four attacks resulted in eight deaths, excluding the perpetrators, exceeding the number of fatalities attributed to ideologically motivated extremist violence in the United States during 2024.[9][10]
See also
- Columbine effect – Legacy of the 1999 Columbine massacre
- Copycat crime – Criminal act that is inspired by a previous crime
- Terrorgram – Network of neo-fascist Telegram channels