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Teen dies after pretending to take his own life for TikTok prank
24 May 2021, 16:12
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TikTok have removed the tragic video from the platform.
A teenager has tragically died while trying to record a TikTok video with his friends on Wednesday (May 19).
The incident occurred in Swat Valley, Pakistan, AFP reports. The 19-year-old boy, named Hamidullah, was well known in his local area and had 8,000 followers before his death.
The tragic incident occurred when Hamidullah was being filmed by his friends for a video prank that involved a friend's handgun, which he wasn't aware was loaded. "This boy was pretending to commit suicide with a loaded pistol. He put the gun on his head and then it suddenly misfired," senior police officer Badshah Hazrat told AFP.
READ MORE: A 12-year-old boy has been left brain dead after attempting TikTok's Blackout Challenge
"The unfortunate youngster died on the spot as he was directly hit in the head. There was no chance of survival."
Sadly, a clip of the incident somehow ended up on TikTok after Hamidullah's friends circulated it among themselves. Thankfully, TikTok has now removed the video.
In a statement, a TikTok spokesperson said: "At TikTok, we have no higher priority than protecting the safety of our community, and content that promotes or glorifies dangerous behaviour is strictly prohibited and promptly removed to prevent it from becoming a trend on our platform.
"We also block related hashtags and searches to discourage people from participating in or sharing potentially dangerous content."
This comes after another tragic death on the platform. In March, Joshua Haileyesus was left fighting for his life after doing the Blackout Challenge on TikTok, which involves choking yourself until you lose consciousness. Sadly, Joshua died in April after 19 days on life support.
