A 10-year-old girl has accidentally choked herself to death while taking part in dangerous “blackout challenge” on the video-sharing app, TikTok.
The victim named Antonella Sicomero died in a Palermo hospital, Sicily after being discovered lifeless on Wednesday by her four-year-old sister in her family bathroom with her cellphone, which was seized by police, MetroUK reports.
She told her family she was going for a shower – but investigators are said to believe she was really filming herself for the online craze.
The victim’s heartbroken dad Angelo said one of Antonella’s sisters told him she had been taking part in a TikTok challenge, according to La Repubblica.
He told the paper;
Antonella was playing the game of asphyxiation. My daughter, little Antonella, who dies because of an extreme game on TikTok, how can I accept it?
Police in Sicily have seized Antonella’s phone and are investigating possible links to social media sites.
Like a dangerous TikTok challenge known as ‘Blue Whale’, the ‘Blackout’ game Antonella is feared to have joined has been popular on the app over the past year.
Experts have warned of the risks associated with these challenges, including fainting, seizures, brain damage, and even death.
Public prosecutors in Palermo have opened two investigations for “instigation to suicide“.
Investigators are looking into if she was broadcasting her challenge live on the app, if she had been invited to play the game by someone else or if she was making the film for a friend.
Prosecutors also want to verify if she was copying videos of other TikTok users taking part in the challenge.
ANSA media agency reports that she arrived at hospital in cardiac arrest on Friday. Doctors fought to save her life but she was later declared brain dead and in an irreversible coma.
Her organs were donated to save three other children in need of certain body parts before her life support was switched off.
Dad Angelo said; “In this way, Antonella will save many children.”
Reacting to the development, TikTok said they would be fully cooperating with authorities.
A spokesman expressed;
Our deepest sympathies are with the girl’s family and friends. We do not allow content that encourages, promotes, or glorifies dangerous behavior that might lead to injury, and our teams work diligently to identify and remove content that violates our policies.
While we have not currently found evidence of content on our platform that might have encouraged such an incident off-platform, we will continue to monitor closely as part of our continuous commitment to keep our community safe.
We will also assist the relevant authorities with their investigation as appropriate.
