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Phuket Murder-Suicide Livestream Sparks Scrutiny of Facebook and YouTube

Police call it Thailand’s first killing broadcast on Facebook Live.

Overview

  • Thai police say 21-year-old Wuttisan Wongtalay hanged his 11-month-old daughter, Natalie, and then himself at an abandoned hotel in Phuket, broadcasting the act on Facebook Live.
  • The graphic video reportedly remained on Facebook for about a day before removal, and relatives who saw it alerted authorities, who arrived too late to intervene.
  • Facebook issued condolences to the family, stated the content had been taken down, and said it would review its procedures for handling violent livestreams.
  • The footage was also posted to YouTube and was removed after the BBC alerted the company, according to the coverage.
  • The child’s mother, 21-year-old Chiranut Trairat, told the Associated Press she does not blame Facebook and described her husband’s prior abusive behavior and earlier imprisonment.