{"id":549,"date":"2026-05-27T07:07:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T07:07:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549"},"modified":"2026-05-27T07:07:27","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T07:07:27","slug":"boyfriend-of-hell-on-wheels-killer-mackenzie-shirilla-sent-her-a-chilling-text-month-before-deadly-wreck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549","title":{"rendered":"Boyfriend of ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\u201cHell on Wheels\u201d killer Mackenzie Shirilla\u2019s late boyfriend eerily texted her about how \u201cthere isn\u2019t very much time on earth\u201d as he dumped her a month before his wild car-crash death.<\/p>\n

Read more Brewers\u2019 Abner Uribe celebrates with wild \u2018suck it\u2019 chop at Cardinals \u2014 but manager was \u2019embarrassed\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

The chilling message, obtained by TMZ, shows Dominic Russo, 20, gently telling his would-be teen murderer that they needed time apart.<\/p>\n

\u201cKenzie u know i love u but i don\u2019t think we should be together at this point there isnt very much time on earth yaknow,\u201d he wrote in the message, which Shirilla read on June 2, 2022 \u2014 a month before she intentionally floored her Toyota Camry into a brick wall at 100 mph, killing Russo and friend Davion Flanagan, 19, in Strongsville, Ohio.<\/p>\n

\u201cI dont want u to think im abandoning u i wish it could work but i don\u2019t think its going to at this point especially with the threats,\u201d he continued. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe should just breakup so we can both find happiness somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shirilla, 21, is serving two concurrent sentences of 15 years to life. She\u2019s now appealing her conviction a second time.<\/p>\n

Her twisted saga is the subject of the hit Netflix documentary, \u201cThe Crash,\u201d which has catapulted to No. 1 since its debut Friday.<\/p>\n

The then-19-year-old killed Russo because their relationship fizzled.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe had a mission, and she executed it with precision. The decision was death,\u201d Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Nancy Margaret Russo said in 2023.<\/p>\n

Following the murders, Shirilla posted loving messages to Russo\u2019s online obituary \u2014 despite evidence showing that she made zero attempt to brake before the fatal wreck.<\/p>\n

\u201cI miss you nug. I still feel like your just going to walk in the door any second. I miss your laugh your perfect smile. I feel your energy around me everyday i just wish it was physical,\u201d a post written on Aug. 24, 2022, under her name said.<\/p>\n

Read more Park Slope Food Coop passes controversial Israel boycott in divisive, chaotic meet attended by over 7K members<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cGod u are the last person to deserve this you had such a perfect life ahead of you\u2026 i wish i told you all this more. Please wait for me\u200b.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Shirilla was arrested four months after the crash.<\/p>\n

She had texted Russo\u2019s mother, Christine, after his death, claiming she blacked out at the time and had no memories of what happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember turning onto the street, and then my vision fades to black,\u201d Shirilla wrote, according to court documents obtained by People.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt really kills me not to be able to remember anything. I promise you I would tell you. I\u2019ve been asking my therapist why I don\u2019t remember, and she said it\u2019s because of trauma. I\u2019m gonna try to get myself hypnotized and make myself remember.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, former inmates have opened up about Shirilla\u2019s life behind bars at Ohio Reformatory for Women \u2014 including that her nickname was \u201cShirilla the Killa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another inmate said Shirilla was like the Regina George \u201cMean Girl\u201d of prison \u2014 makeup and hair always perfectly done.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was in there with her, you\u2019d look at her and she had her makeup done every day, she was very well put together \u2014 almost like preppy,\u201d Mary Katherine Crowder, who served about six months alongside Shirilla, told The Post.<\/p>\n

Read more Fox News reporter\u2019s searing response to foul-mouthed anti-ICE protester who interrupts live shot<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cHell on Wheels\u201d killer Mackenzie Shirilla\u2019s late boyfriend eerily texted her about how \u201cthere isn\u2019t very much time on earth\u201d as he dumped her a month before his car-crash death.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":548,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-news"],"yoast_head":"\nBoyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Boyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cHell on Wheels\u201d killer Mackenzie Shirilla\u2019s late boyfriend eerily texted her about how \u201cthere isn\u2019t very much time on earth\u201d as he dumped her a month before his car-crash death.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\"},\"headline\":\"Boyfriend of ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549\"},\"wordCount\":592,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"US News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549\",\"name\":\"Boyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":799},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=549#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Boyfriend of ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Metro Transit Review\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Boyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Boyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review","og_description":"\u201cHell on Wheels\u201d killer Mackenzie Shirilla\u2019s late boyfriend eerily texted her about how \u201cthere isn\u2019t very much time on earth\u201d as he dumped her a month before his car-crash death.","og_url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549","og_site_name":"Metro Transit Review","article_published_time":"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14"},"headline":"Boyfriend of ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck","datePublished":"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549"},"wordCount":592,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp","articleSection":["US News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549","name":"Boyfriend of 'Hell on Wheels' killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck - Metro Transit Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-27T07:07:27+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a3d3b84275da1ee5de5ec12df869fc93.webp","width":1200,"height":799},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=549#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Boyfriend of ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer Mackenzie Shirilla sent her a chilling text month before deadly wreck"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/","name":"Metro Transit Review","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/metrotransitreview.com"],"url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=549"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/549\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}