A Southern California-based Nigerian family has lost a 13-year-old son, Nnamdi Glenn Ohaeri Jr., in a mysterious circumstance.
Cause of his death remains cloudy as the deceased was ssid to have died after participating in a dangerous social media challenge.
The teenager was said to have been found unresponsive in his parents’ Murrieta home on February 3, 2025, a day after watching the recent Grammy Awards ceremony with his family.
His parents, Nnamdi and his wife, discovered their son, motionless and immediately took action.
His mother was said to have started performing Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation, while his father called emergency services.
Initial signs suggested it might have been suicide, but the parents launched their own investigation, and found out that the teen might have been influenced by a hazardous social media trend.
Thus trend is similar to the “Blackout Challenge,” the dangerous challenge reportedly encourages participants to render themselves unconscious. This challenge has been linked to multiple deaths, raising concerns among parents and authorities.
Although, Ohaeri Jr. did not have social media accounts, and had strict parental controls on his phone, his parents believed he might have learned about the challenge through friends or classmates.
The grieving parents are urging other families to be vigilant about the online content their children encounter.
Ohaeri Sr. expressed regret, admitting he hadn’t considered the dangers of social media trends. “We don’t talk about not following social media trends… maybe we need to,” he said.
The family hopes their story will encourage open conversations about social media risks. The cause of death has not been officially confirmed, and the Murrieta Police Department is still investigating the incident, though it remains unclear if it was a suicide or an accident related to the challenge.
Additional details from Vanguard.
