An 11-year-old boy from the Upper Peninsula is dead, taking his own life after a social media prank.
Police say a 13-year-old girl is being charged.
Tysen Benz from Marquette believed his girlfriend was dead.
Police say that’s when the boy decided to end his own life.
Tysen spent three weeks in critical condition before passing away Tuesday at the hospital in Ann Arbor.
His mother, Katrina Goss, says her son was "manipulated" and "pranked" by the girl, who is not being identified because of her age.
The heartbroken mom is speaking out so children and adults realize the potential dangers of social media.
“No matter what age they are, they can access really extremely inappropriate things. Texting is just like speaking and they don’t understand the magnitude, the results, that can happen. Words, text, social media. Facebook all those different things. Unfortunately really young kids have exposure to adult content,” Katrina Goss said.
The girl is charged with malicious use of telecommunication services and using a computer to commit a crime.
Tysen’s funeral is Tuesday, April 11.
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