Facebook groups, Reddit forums and TikTok posts are adding to the intrigue surrounding the deaths of four college students. Experts say they likely won't help crack the case.
The hundreds of tips and calls provided to local, state and federal investigators as a result of cyber sleuthing can help — both to pinpoint plausible leads and to rule out potential suspects — but former FBI agents and law enforcement experts say they more often than not are a hindrance to an investigation, divert resources and attention, and can even be harmful by ensnaring innocent people.
Intrigue surrounding Petito's disappearance exploded on social media with a dedicated hashtag racking up more than 1 billion views on TikTok posts as users theorized what happened to her. Petito's body was ultimately discovered in a Wyoming forest.
And on TikTok, posts with the hashtag #idahomurders have more than 94.2 million views, with users questioning if a serial killer is behind the deaths or if the homicides are linked to other similar cases of unsolved stabbings in the region. "There is speculation, without factual backing, stoking community fears and spreading false facts," the department said in a news release this week. The city's website about the case also includes a"rumor control" section seeking to tamp down unvetted information.
In addition, crowd-sourced investigations can ruin lives, he added, as with what happened when users on Reddit, Twitter and other social media platforms"It's extremely dangerous," Wandt said."There's a Wild, Wild West aspect to all of this." "The fact that I had a nervous smile on my face, people clung to that. 'Oh, he's smiling, he's proud of what he did,'" Reagan said."But I wasn't asking to be interviewed by a reporter. She literally stopped me while I was taking out the garbage, and I had nothing to hide, so I spoke with her."
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