An 11-year-old boy in Italy has taken his own life by jumping off his balcony and investigators believe his suicide has something to do with a new online challenge that targets younger social media users.
The boy fell from his balcony last Tuesday at around 1 a.m., leaving a note behind hinting to the disturbing game.
“I love you, mom, and dad. Now I have to follow the man in the black hood. I have no more time. Forgive me,” the child wrote.
The note likely referred to an online character “Jonathan Galindo” who orders kids to achieve several tasks that wrap up with suicide.
All those who knew the boy said that he had no issues and seemed happy in his life. It’s unclear when exactly he started playing the twisted game in which the main character’s designer insisted he never intended it to be used by “some modern-day thrillseeker looking to scare and bully people.”
The new game shares similarities with the infamous blue whale challenge that claimed over 130 lives in suicides.
