US5 min(s) read
Published 14:48 25 May 2026 GMT
A woman who claims to have dated Mackenzie Shirilla behind bars has spoken out - and here's everything we know about her and their alleged relationship.
As previously reported, there has been renewed interest in the case of Mackenzie Shirilla murder case, four years after the 100mph crash that killed her boyfriend and friend, since the release of the Netflix documentary, The Crash.
Mackenzie, then 17, was found guilty of killing two men, ex-boyfriend Dominic Russo, 21, and Davion Flanagan, 19.
It was determined that she had intentionally crashed her car into a brick wall at over 100 mph in July 2022, leaving the two men dead as the vehicle was smashed beyond recognition.
Mackenzie was pulled from the wreckage alive, and was later convicted of murder in 2023, after the judge ruled that she crashed the car on purpose in a premeditated murder.
The now-21-year-old was convicted of 12 felony charges and sentenced to two concurrent life sentences, with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
Following the release of the documentary, a woman claiming to have been Mackenzie's girlfriend whle they were both at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville, known for housing minimum and medium security inmates, has spoken out.
Shyann Topping, 27, spent two years behind bars after being convicted on drug charges, and claims she started dating Mackenzie just two weeks before she was released.
Speaking to the U.S. Sun, Shyann reiterated that Mackenzie had a "popular girl aura", something other fellow inmates had also said about her.
She added: “She said she was just gonna live it [if she gets out], like she’s gonna go back to concerts. She’s gonna travel,
“She’s gonna be an influencer and write a book when she gets out about everything that happened.
“She said it might take some time, but she’s gonna get out and live it again,” Shyann claimed.
The former convict said that Mackenzie claimed she was not aware of the facts behind the case, believing it was an accident.
Shyann recalled: “I thought, okay, if this girl really is innocent, it would be an amazing story to get out, write a book and blow up off of that and even honor your boyfriend and his friend,
“Then if she did blow up, okay, she could set the families off with her, what is it? Publishing money.”
However, Shyann's view changed after her release and she now believes Mackenzie is in fact guilty, and is trying to chase fame off the back of the tragedy.
She claims Mackenzie allegedly boasted about her nickname in prison, "Shirilla The Killa," explaining: “Now I’m thinking, okay, she was just trying to grab a piece of fame.
“I don’t think she would do any of that for the families if she got out.
“I think she would throw up a big middle finger to them like, I got away with it.”
One line of defense Mackenzie has continually promoted is that she had suffered a seizure behind the wheel due to having POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), a disorder linked with the autonomic nervous system, however, Shyann does not believe this to be the case based on her interactions with Mackenzie.
Shyann also claimed that Mackenzie would wake up at 6AM every morning to do her hair and makeup, and that she regularly got money from her parents, adding: “She would do art a lot…. would paint cups for people, paint people’s shoes, draw, stuff like that.”
Everyone in prison was assigned a job, and Mackenzie was on the maintenance team.
Shyann said Mackenzie was demanding while they were together, asking to see her at 7AM at first yard as they were in different sections.
“If we did argue, it’s because I didn’t come outside on time or didn’t come outside for that yard,” she recalled.
“And she’d be like, ‘I was waiting for you. Where were you? Like, if this is how it’s gonna go, I just won’t talk to you.'”
Their alleged romance came to an end just weeks after starting, as Shyann was released, adding: "Mackenzie was upset that I was leaving. She would tell me all the time, ‘I wish we met sooner before you were about to get out. I wish you would have talked before this.'"
While they did video call and stay in touch shortly after Shyann's release, things ended up fizzling out.
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