The online pillory triggered after a trivial argument on a multiplayer video game platform transfers into real life, making life impossible for a 16-year-old who, in the end decides to turn to the police who identify and report a 25-year-old tiktoker with thousands of followers.
The incident occurred in Naples. The persecution that followed the argument, made up of defamatory messages, threats and insults, had plunged the victim into a growing sense of isolation. The young man decided to abandon the game and, fortunately, also to talk about it with his parents. In the meantime, however, he continued to receive threatening messages and phone insults, a real bombardment on social media. Together with his father, he decided to go to the police in San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, in the province of Naples, who immediately started investigations: the military of the Arma discovered that behind the invectives there was a 25-year-old tiktoker from Melito di Naples, followed by thousands of followers.
He was identified and reported for stalking actions: thus averting yet another case of online bullying potentially capable of triggering tragic consequences. "The story told - explains in a note the provincial command of the Carabinieri of Naples - raises concrete questions about digital culture and invokes the need to address the scourge of bullying in all its forms. The intervention of the Carabinieri adds an element of hope, indicating that justice can penetrate even into the digital world. Any perceived alarm bell, especially when minors are targeted, must be collected and reported".