A 20-year-old man has been charged with murder following an online altercation where his victim laugh-reacted to his Facebook profile picture.
20-year-old Tanner Watkins and 18-year-old Kaleb Ramsey were charged with 1st degree murder after an online interaction went sour.
According to local law enforcement, the murder was sparked by a conversation that took place on social media. Screenshots circling the internet show an encounter that purportedly sparked a deadly shooting in Sikeston, Missouri, resulting in the death of an 18-year-old man and severe injuries to an 18-year-old woman.
According to the screenshots, Watkins posted a profile picture of himself and a young lady on Facebook. The image shows a laughing reaction underneath the photo, prompting Watkins to call out the person who allegedly laughed at the picture.
Man allegedly murders victim for laugh-reacting to Facebook profile picture
“What’s funny?” Watkins purportedly wrote. “Tryna get some bread, huh? An[d] sh*t, idk, you the one on my dock. Nah, you always on some funny sh*t. The f*ck you even react to my sh*t for, anyways? I’m ready though.” The shooter ended this last comment with a target emoji and a thumbs-up.
“I seen [redacted] on it, why would I not?” the victim wrote in response.
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“The f*ck that got to do with it,” Watkins purportedly replied. “You feel some type of way? That’s my shorty, and it’s all smoke behind her, too. You got me confused for the wrong ****, watch and see.”
Some dude murdered a guy because the guy laugh reacted a profile picture of him and his girlfriend. pic.twitter.com/IbrV8vFTmS
— Maw (@TheEbonyMaw) May 2, 2023
According to reports, Watkins met up with the victim at a park to fight on Tuesday, April 25. Weapons were discharged at the scene, and several calls were placed alerting law enforcement about the gunfire, which left one 18-year-old man dead and an 18-year-old woman severely injured.
The identities of the victims have not yet been released by law enforcement, so it’s unclear if the deceased is the person Watkins was arguing with in the aforementioned post. However, both victims are reportedly from the Sikeston area.
Both Watkins and Ramsey have been charged with murder in the first degree, three counts of assault in the first degree, four counts of “unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action.”
This is just the latest crime to shock social media after a former Konami employee was charged with attempted murder for attacking his boss.