Blasting News reported the story of a 15-year-old Chicago teenager who went missing from her home on Sunday. She was found Tuesday after she was spotted on a livestreaming video on Facebook Live, where around five or six men or boys were seen to be sexually assaulting her. The family took images captured from the footage to police, who managed to track her down safely. However, Chicago police are still looking for suspects in the alleged group rape of the girl and no arrests have yet been made. According to police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, they are currently questioning several people about the incident.

Rape victim receiving death threats

According to a report by CBS Chicago, the teenager’s family has said they are now receiving Death threats. Some of these death threats are reportedly being made online, but reportedly the family has also been harassed in their own home by people ringing the doorbell, asking to see the teen. According to Andrew Holmes, a community activist in the area, the teen is too scared to return home and is staying elsewhere. Holmes said the people doing the harassing reportedly believe the teenager brought the situation on herself.

Rape victim knows one of the suspects

According to Guglielmi, the girl told police that she knows at least one of the men who allegedly sexually assaulted her.

Investigators say there were at least 40 live viewers to the Facebook Live footage. However they say to track down their names, they would need to prove there had been criminal activity involved and then subpoena Facebook for their identities. Speaking for Facebook, Andrea Saul said the company had no comment on the incident, but that the company takes its responsibility to keep people safe very seriously.

Saul added that the social media platform does not allow this kind of content on their platform or on Facebook Live.

Why do onlookers not intervene in such incidences?

The Boston Herald reports on the phenomenon whereby 40 people can watch a crime unfolding on Facebook Live without reporting the incident to the police and then goes on to ask why they don’t intervene.

In their report they refer to what is known as the “bystanders’ effect.” This is a phenomenon which is described by psychologists as being a situation where the more onlookers are watching an attack, the less likely it is that one of them will actually do anything to intervene. Studies run in the 1960s suggest that people in crowds will normally assume that someone else has reported the crime.
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