My boy, 14, thought he was innocently flirting with a girl on TikTok – 35-minutes later he was dead

The Sun

a day ago

WHEN Morgan Moore got a call from her son's dad, she wasn't expecting her world to fall apart instantly.
Her son, Caleb, who was just 14 years old, had taken a gun and shot himself.
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Like most teenagers, Caleb had spent the evening on social media and had found a girl online with whom he began innocently flirting, or so he thought.
Caleb and the '14-year-old girl' had met on TikTok, but soon moved their conversation over to Snapchat where she allegedly sent him compromising photos of herself.
The mum-of-five says Caleb then sent over similar photos in return.
But Caleb had been conned, the 'girl' wasn't who he thought and was instead a sextortion scammer who threatened to release Caleb's photos unless he sent money.
The online exchange lasted just 35-minutes and tragically ended Caleb's life when he took a gun from the home.
In that moment, Morgan, 33, believes her son felt like he had nowhere to turn and shot himself.
Now, the brave mum has shared her son's story to raise awareness and keep others safe.
Morgan, from El Dorado, Kansas, US, said: "I want his death to have as much meaning as his life did, which was a lot. He is very, very missed and very loved.
"I never thought this would happen to him or us. I found out about it right after Caleb had fired the gun because his dad called me.
The mum rushed over to the house as soon as she got the call, and while Caleb was still alive, she was unable to be with him in his last moments.
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"When I got there, Caleb was still alive and breathing but they were unable to resuscitate him so they stopped trying as nothing was working," she explains.
"He passed away in the house and it was very difficult because I wanted to be with him but they wouldn't let me go inside as they didn't want me to see anything.
"I was hysterical and screaming and begging them to not give up on my boy and let me go to him. I was inconsolable.
"It was the worst moment of my life. At this point, we didn't know why Caleb had shot himself. It didn't make sense.
"It was probably the next day when the police called and wanted to show me something on his phone.
They made him feel like his life was over as he had made this mistake.
Morgan Moore
"That is when they had gone through his TikTok messages and showed me the progression. It had stolen my boy's happiness and hope in a 35-minute span.
"It was someone posing as a girl his age and they started flirting and she sent him photos and then 'she' asked him to send pictures.
"He sent the photos and these were of a compromising nature. As soon as he sent them, the conversation switched.
"This person began demanding money and making threats that if he didn't send over the money they were going to expose his photos and his family and friends would be ashamed of him.
"They made him feel like his life was over as he had made this mistake."
What is Sextortion?
'Sextortion' is a type of online blackmail. It's when criminals threaten to share sexual pictures, videos, or information about you unless you pay money or do something else you don't want to.
Anyone can be a victim of sextortion. However, young people aged between 15 to 17, and adults aged under 30, are often most at risk.
Criminals often target people through dating apps, social media, webcams, or pornography sites. They may use a fake identity to befriend you online. If a person you've just met online chats to you in a sexual way, or asks for sexual images, it might be an attempt at sextortion.
You should be wary if someone you've met online:
is trying to start a relationship with you very quickly (they may even send you a sexual image first)
chats to you in a sexual way, or asks for sexual images, soon after you've met them.
has sent friend requests to lots of people, not just you
repeatedly asks you to do sexual things that you're not comfortable with
tells you they've hacked your account or have access to your contacts
Sextortion attempts can happen very quickly, or they can happen over a long time. You should never share sexual images or information about yourself if you are not comfortable.
You can still be a victim of sextortion if you haven't shared sexual images or information. Criminals may have hacked one of your accounts, or created edited or fake images or videos, like deepfakes, of you that appear real.
Even if blackmail isn't involved, sharing or threatening to share intimate photos or videos of you without your permission is illegal. This is called ' revenge porn' or intimate image abuse.
From the Met Police website
Morgan says her son had been using TikTok for about a year and says they had had open conversations about internet safety.
Before shooting himself, she claims Caleb even sent a photo of the gun to the TikTok user to try and stop the threats but it didn't help.
Morgan said: "These people intentionally manipulate what a 14-year-old boy would be vulnerable about - their sexuality, the family's wellbeing and social status.
"I don't think Caleb thought that we wouldn't help him, I think he felt like we wouldn't be able to help him or fix it and it was going to be his fault and none of these things are true.
He had even sent a photo of the gun to them and they still didn't stop and so he did use it.
Morgan Moore
"The most devastating loss I can imagine is losing one of your kids and now I'm in that situation and it was all so avoidable.
"I know Caleb had pleaded with the person to not send the pictures out. He had even sent a photo of the gun to them and they still didn't stop and so he did use it.
"It's so heartless and anonymous. The police are doing what they can but the reality of them tracking down the individual is really low.
"It's incredibly overwhelming because even though Caleb was the most loved kid and happy, funny and responsible on these platforms and this still happened to him.
"I don't have any idea how these people found my son and I'm guessing TikTok doesn't either.
"I think there should be more accountability or monitoring [on TikTok]. There has to be something that they can do."
Caleb's funeral took place on June 16 and Morgan says around 300 people turned up to celebrate his life.
She is now using her son's tragic death to urge other children to tell a responsible adult if they feel they are in danger online.
Morgan said: "Caleb was a pretty popular kid, really funny and goofy and made people laugh a lot.
"He was mild-mannered so got along with everybody. He loves sports and played football, basketball and was really good at wrestling.
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"I don't know how to stress enough to children to tell someone, your parents, about it or another trusted adult.
"You just have to tell someone because they purposely make it seem like they have so much more power than they do.
"You need to battle the false communication between the scammer and your child with open conversation with you and your child."
El Dorado Police Department confirmed that the conversation began on TikTok before moving to another platform on which the images were sent.
It is unclear if Caleb had used his correct age to access the platform.
Snapchat said they offer 'strong safety settings' for Snapchat users aged between 13-17 and have a Family Safety Hub on their website designed to help families navigate Snapchat safely and confidently.
TikTok says they are deeply committed to making their platform a safe and positive experience for teens.
The social media platform claims that teens using TikTok who are aged 16 do not have access to direct messaging.
Adults using the platform are also unable to send message requests to teens and no one in the US can send off-platform imagery in DMs.
The platform said that when people receive a message from someone for the first time, they are prompted to mark the conversation as safe or report the sender.
Messaging on TikTok is not end-to-end encrypted, which the social media giant claims makes its platform undesirable for those who would attempt to share illegal material.
Snapchat said on their website page how they offer extra protection to teens to help prevent unwanted contact from strangers.
This includes strong safety settings for Snapchat users aged between 13-17, which means their accounts are private by default that also includes their friends lists.
Due to this, they state that users of this age can only communicate with mutually accepted friends or those whose numbers they have already saved to their contacts.
Snapchat also has a Family Safety Hub on their website which is intentionally designed to help families navigate Snapchat safely and confidently.
An El Dorado Police Department spokesman said: "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Moore family during this difficult time.
"We are amazed at the incredible strength and courage that this family has shown through the tragedy that they have suffered.
"We strongly support the fact that the family has made it a priority to share this story with others in an effort to protect the lives of other children and we intend to support this family in every way possible."
Following his death, a GoFundMe page was set up to help support Caleb's family at this difficult time.
After funeral costs his parents are going to use the extra funds to set up a scholarship fund for the local athletics team.
YOU'RE NOT ALONE
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society - from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others... You're Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organizations provide support:
CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk
Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123
Movember, www.uk.movember.com