YouTube is now at the centre of a murder case, after commenters on the video sharing site named the alleged killer of schoolboy Rhys Jones.
Rhys, 11, was gunned down in Croxteth Park, Liverpool on August 22nd. Although 18 people have so far been arrested over the shooting, no-one has been charged with the crime.
Now police may have a new lead after a commenter named a teenage boy, already a prime suspect, on YouTube.
The comment appeared under a four minute video of Liverpool street gang members brandishing guns. The video has now been removed, but police are investigating the allegation attached to it.
Allegation By Comment
One comment is supposed to have read:
“No-one set out that night to kill Rhys.”
To which another commenter replied:
“Who da f**k is no-one? It was ***** ***** who killed Rhys and everybody knows.”
The person named is believed to be a gang member, and has already been named by dozens of callers to the police investigating the death.
Detective Superintendent Dave Kelly, in charge of the investigation responded to the YouTube find by saying:
“At the end of the day, what interests me is evidence. This is a meticulous investigation and I don’t deal in speculation. It is not enough to have a name, you have to know why that person has been named and make a judgment from there.”
More Evidence Needed
So although YouTube may have unknowingly hosted the name of an alleged killer, without further evidence nothing can be done.
YouTube meanwhile have removed the video and comments, but not before over 10,000 people got to view it.
A spokesman told The Daily Mirror:
“When users feel content is inappropriate they can flag it and our staff then review it as quickly as possible to see if it violates our terms of use. If users repeatedly break these rules then we disable their accounts.”
But is that enough when someone has been accused of murder? If this person is innocent of the crime, then surely YouTube would be liable for hosting a false allegation?
