A man has been arrested following the tragic death of 11-year-old Tommie-lee Gracie Billington, who died during a sleepover at a friend’s house on March 2 due to a ‘TikTok craze’ gone wrong. An inquest revealed that Tommie-lee lost consciousness at a home in Lancaster after “inhaling toxic substances.” He suffered cardiac arrest in front of his friends and died shortly after being rushed to the hospital. The deadly TikTok ‘trend’ involved inhaling substances that slow down brain activity, leading to dizziness, hallucinations, nausea, and disorientation. It can also cause heart attacks or suffocation.
Lancashire Police confirmed the arrest of a 25-year-old man from Lancaster on suspicion of child cruelty, neglect, possession with intent to supply a drug, and money laundering. He has been released on bail pending further inquiries. A 35-year-old woman was also interviewed voluntarily in connection with possession with intent to supply. She has been released under investigation, told Daily Mail.
Tommie-lee’s devastated grandmother, Tina Burns, spoke out after the tragedy. She said, “He had a heart of gold just like his dad. Our family is utterly devastated. He died instantly after a sleepover at a friend’s house. Tommie-Lee went into cardiac arrest immediately and died right there and then. The hospital did everything to try and bring him back but nothing worked. He was gone.”
Burns, a teaching assistant, added, “Both our families are utterly devastated, but we all want the same thing. We don’t want any other children to follow TikTok or be on social media. In fact, we want to get TikTok taken down and no children to be allowed on any social media under 16 years of age. This is breaking us all, but we want to help save other children’s lives and give families awareness to keep their children safe.”
She also shared that many parents have thanked her for raising awareness. “One person said that she had no idea about these social media crazes and that her children happily stay in their rooms on TikTok. She never knew there were things like this on it. She has now removed all social media from their devices and is so grateful that we are openly talking about it.”
Tommie-lee’s mother, Sherri, issued a stark warning to parents on Facebook. “As much as I hate talking about it, I need to raise awareness of what kids are trying nowadays. This cost my son his life from trying something other kids are doing. They are using this and breathing them in to try to get a buzz. It’s so dangerous.” Sherri urged parents to talk to their children about the consequences of such actions. “Please talk to your children about the consequences of this. I have no idea how this even came about for children to try.”