A teenage girl has taken her own life after a selfie she took was being shared online and was being called offensive.
Phoebe Connop, 16, had been speaking regularly with a man online and despite never having met him in person, referred to him as her ‘boyfriend’, reports the Telegraph.
An inquest heard the UK teen took a photo of herself wearing a scarf over her head and darkened her complexion and shared it in a private Instagram chat with friends. Phoebe said this is what she would have to look like to get approval from her boyfriend’s parents.
A coroner was told the image was then shared wider by one of her friends on the private chat, prompting Phoebe into fearing a backlash.
Not long after the photo was circulated Phoebe’s father found her dead in her room from suicide on July 7.
Giving evidence, Detective Sergeant Katherine Tomkins, from West Midlands Police, said: “From speaking to her friends in the weeks following her death, we discovered that the image had circulated further than she wanted it to.
“There had been some negative reaction and she confided in her friend, who did take the image down at her request, that she was scared of what the reaction might be from the Asian community in her area.”
If you or anyone you might know needs to talk to someone about depression, suicide or mental health call Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14
