PHILADELPHIA – A Philadelphia man is facing online backlash over an X post asking followers who should get “Kirked” next and naming conservative activist Scott Presler, content creator Nick Shirley and Vice President JD Vance.
The Sept. 9 post came from the account @EZaketz, which displays the name “Big Pizza.” A screenshot of the post shows it asking, “Who should get Kirked next? Leave your answer in the replies! Shirley, Presler, Vance, the list goes on!”
Shirley later shared the post with his followers, writing that a “mental mind virus is spreading into the minds of the radical 1%” and calling it a “dangerous time to be alive.”
Presler also responded publicly, quoting the original message and addressing “Evan” directly.
“Evan, that’s not very nice, especially since you’re in Philadelphia, PA,” Presler said.
Online Employment Records Pointed to Philadelphia Pizzeria
Attention quickly turned to the identity behind the account and an apparent connection to Pizzeria Beddia in Philadelphia.
A LinkedIn profile for Evan Szakats lists him in Philadelphia and associates him with Pizzeria Beddia. Search results for that profile describe his position as line cook/garde manger, and other online employment databases continue to list him as working for the restaurant.
Those listings, however, appear to be outdated.
Pizzeria Beddia responded Sunday to questions about Szakats and said, “He hasn’t worked at the pizzeria for years.”
Szakats’ current employment is unknown at this time. After making the post, he disabled all of his social media accounts as backlash began to grow online.
Post Draws Scrutiny After Kirk Killing
The wording “Kirked” rerefences the murder of Charlie Kirk and the post specifically identified three political or conservative figures as possible people to be “Kirked” next.
The FBI field office in Philadelphia did not reply for comment on this post, nor did the U.S. Secret Service.
The screenshot shows the original post had received 831 views at the time it was captured. Shirley’s later response received substantially wider circulation.