15-Year-Old Dies 3 Hours After Family Claims He Was Targeted in Sextortion: ‘They Say It’s Suicide, But in My Book It Is 100% Murder’  By Charna Flam

A 15-year-old boy was found dead by a self-inflicted gunshot wound hours after his family says he received a strange text message from an unknown number.

Bryce Tate, a high school sophomore, was found deceased in his Cross Lanes, W. Va., at 7:10 p.m. on Nov. 6, Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) said in a Nov. 21 news release. The KCSO’s Digital Forensic Lab then began investigating his death and found that at 4:37 p.m. that day, “he was targeted in an online sextortion scheme,” according to KCSO.

Sextortion is when victims are coerced “into taking and sending sexually explicit photos and videos—and then immediately demand payment or threaten to release the photo to the victim’s family and friends,” according to the FBI.

Bryce’s father, Adam Tate, told The New York Post that his son was targeted under the guise that the phone number belonged to “a local 17-year-old girl.” The scammer “built [Bryce’s] trust to where he believed that this was truly somebody in this area,” Adam explained, saying that the perpetrator knew where Bryce worked out, who his friends were and where he attended high school.

The scammers sent Bryce illicit photos of a young girl — who is suspected to be another victim — and asked him for illicit pictures in return.

Typically, when the photos are sent, the scammer will extort the victim or threaten to share the photos with the victim’s friends and family. The scammers will request the funds via Cash App, Venmo, gift cards or cryptocurrency — an untraceable form of payment. If the victim doesn’t have the money, the scammers allegedly will threaten them with violence. 

In Bryce’s case, the scammers allegedly asked for $500. The teen didn’t have the money, but offered to give his “last $30,” Adam told The New York Post.

His family claims that the scammers then told Bryce to commit suicide because his “life is already over.”

“They say it’s suicide, but in my book it is 100% murder,” Adam told The New York Post. “They’re godless demons, in my opinion. Just cowards, awful individuals, worse than criminals.”

In the 20 minutes before Bryce died, the scammers reportedly sent him 120 messages. His father said that the onslaught of messages is a tactic to create “tunnel vision to where you can’t set your phone down,” according to the outlet.

Adam told WSAZ that the scammers “bombard victims with relentless threats, isolation tactics, and fabricated shame, convincing them, in a matter of hours, that their world is irreparably destroyed and that reaching out would only amplify the ruin.”

The grieving father also remarked that “the insidious power of these predators” was able to “shatter” his family’s “tightly knit” bond. 

“We had open communication, and Bryce knew he could confide in us about absolutely anything without judgment,” he told WSAZ. “These cowards, operating from the shadows, exploit vulnerability with ruthless efficiency.”

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“This isn’t just manipulation — it’s a calculated assault on the innocent, preying on trust and fear to drive permanent, devastating decisions before loved ones can intervene,” Adam told WSAZ. “I consider it to be the murder of my innocent son.”

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children found over 33,000 reports of child sextortion in 2024, according to The New York Post. 

KCSO said in the Nov. 21 news release that the FBI in Pittsburgh would investigate the case. PEOPLE has reached out to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI for comment.

Now, Adam and West Virginia lawmakers are lobbying to pass “Bryce’s Law,” a proposed cyberbullying bill to create and implement harsher punishments for crimes that lead to self-harm or suicide.

Adam remarked that despite the family’s close bond and the “safe space,” it is “not enough” to prevent these sextortion schemes. “[Families] have to be aware of what the threat is. You have to have that conversation,” he said.

KCSO Sgt. Jeremy Burns advises that children keep their social media profiles private. “Make sure it’s set so that you have to authorize who follows you,” he said, per The New York Post. 

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If young people are being exploited, they are the victim of a crime and should report it. Contact your local FBI field office, call 1-800-CALL-FBI, or report it online at tips.fbi.gov.