Tragedy as teen, 13, dies after creating ‘mind-blowing’ fascination with faculty shooters
A 13-year-old girl died by suicide after falling into a disturbing online world obsessed with school shooters, leaving her mum demanding answers from social media giants
A mother is suing Roblox, a popular online platform, with the hope of preventing other parents from experiencing tragedy – a child’s suicide(Image: FOX19)
Tragedy has struck after a teenage girl died by suicide after developing a “mind-blowing” obsession with school shooters. The teen’s disturbing special interest reportedly grew from spending time on bizarre online communities.
Audree Seitz, from Kentucky, USA, took her life at the young age of 13, just a week after her birthday, after reportedly falling in with online extremists who idolise school shooters. Days later, a detective called Audree’s mum, Jaimee Seitz, to reportedly inform her that her daughter’s journal contained drawings of school shooters.
On Roblox, Discord and TikTok, Audree had reportedly been interacting with children and adults in the online True Crime Community, or “TCC”.
According to reports, TCC glorifies mass shooters and encourages violence and self-harm. Jaimee Seitz consequently revealed that Audree was first exposed to the disturbing online community when she was only eight years old.
She told CBS News: “I think she felt a sense of comfort with this group, with being a part of something, and I believe that they pushed her to do it.” Experts have described TCC as part of a harmful online trend where members aren’t driven by politics, but by a dark fascination with violence and a hatred of society.
“It’s something that was so mind blowing — that it started at such a young age and that she was groomed into this ideology of worshipping school shooters, ” Seitz said. “It’s hard to wrap your head around.”
Seitz further shared that she believes Audree may have been drawn to the group for its embrace of kids who feel alienated from their classmates. “It was hard for her to find her spot in seventh grade,” she said.
Within TCC, people become obsessed with mass killers, swapping fan art, videos, and even dressing like their idols. Experts have therefore warned that while most members just share content, a worrying few go on to commit real-life violence, with several US school shootings now linked to this twisted fandom.
Seitz now reportedly wants social media platforms to face accountability. Despite enabling parental controls on Audree’s phone, she said, her daughter was steeped in TCC content for years, CBS reported.
Last Autumn, the grieving mother reportedly filed suit against Roblox, Discord and TikTok. Her complaint alleges that the apps prioritise user growth over safety and that they are aware that “the design of their apps makes children easy targets for predatory behaviour”.
Social media giants insist they’re cracking down on dangerous content, with Roblox reportedly saying it bans “content or behavior that supports, glorifies, or promotes hate groups, extremist organisations, or their ideologies”. TikTok, after being contacted by CBS about TCC hashtags, quickly removed one and said it takes down any accounts that “promote or glorify violence”.
But devastated mum Jaimee Seitz reportedly said she’d never even heard of TCC before her daughter’s tragic death, and never once heard her talk about school shooters. However, the warning signs, she said, were hidden in plain sight.
Sadly, the references were only understood by those inside the twisted online world. After searching “True Crime Community” on TikTok, she was stunned to see drawings she recognised from Audree.
“Everything started to click within not even two minutes,” she said, realising her daughter’s cartoon sketches were of the Columbine killers, and that a previous TikTok username even referenced one of them. Audree had even asked for a T-shirt linked to the same German band worn by the Columbine shooters and a recent school attacker in Wisconsin.
Looking back, Jaimee now believes Audree may have tried to livestream her own death, a chilling trend seen among TCC followers. “Whether you think your child is seemingly happy, you never know,” Seitz said. “And that’s the scary part of it — that’s what terrifies me the most.”
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