My son killed himself after falling victim to an online scam. I heard it happen – and vowed to protect other children
Gavin Guffey was 17 when he was targeted by a ‘sextortionist’ on Instagram.
His father Brandon has spent four years fighting for justice, and for social media companies to do more to safeguard young users What were the last words Brandon Guffey said to his son Gavin? Four years on, he still struggles with this question.
“That last exchange, it bothers me constantly,” he says.
“I think I said, ‘Goodnight, buddy.
I love you,’ and he said, ‘I’ll see you in the morning.’ I sincerely hope that’s what I said.
The truth is, I’ll never know for certain.” The exchange happened in 2022, on a hot July in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where, just weeks before, Guffey had won the Republican ticket to stand for the state’s House of Representatives.
The election was three months away, Guffey’s head was buzzing with politics, and he’d spent that evening at a local event.
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5News aggregated this summary from the outlet’s public feed. The full article, with all the context, is on www.theguardian.com — the content belongs to The Guardian UK.
