In Virginia, a high school student was slain in a botched TikTok prank.
In what the Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office first reported as a potential “residential burglary in progress.”
18-year-old Michael Bosworth, Jr. was shot and killed by a homeowner on Saturday, May 3, at around 3:00 a.m. in Spotsylvania County.
Bosworth was rushed to the hospital, where he passed away, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.
In an updated release, the sheriff’s office named the suspect as 27-year-old Tyler Butler. He claimed to have “fired shots” at Bosworth and two other youths during a break-in at the house.
During the incident, one of the teenagers suffered “minor injuries.”
According to the press release, “a residential burglary in progress was reported to the SCSO, where a resident had fired shots.”
“When deputies arrived at the scene of Mckenzie Lane, they found that two people had been shot and one person was unharmed.”
According to NBC News4 Washington, the youths who survived stated they weren’t breaking into the house and that they were filming a parody of the well-known “ding-dong ditch” TikTok prank.
Knocking on someone’s door and then leaving before they can answer is the prank. Investigators were shown a video that one of the kids had taken of them doing the prank earlier that evening.
Bosworth was a senior at Massaponax High School who participated in football, lacrosse, and wrestling. On the day of his shooting, he was scheduled to go to prom.
Following the tragedy, the publication called Bosworth’s stepfather “heartbroken.”
Butler was detained and charged with second-degree murder, malicious wounding, and two counts of using a handgun in the commission of a felony.
According to the sheriff’s office, even though no charges were initially brought because the investigation was still underway.
At the moment, he is being held without bond at Rappahannock Regional Jail.
