2 days ago
Alex Moss at Leeds Crown Court
West Yorkshire Police
Dylan Phelan, 21, from Morley, pleaded guilty to encouraging the suicide of Travis Dyer
A British man who admitted encouraging a "vulnerable" 21-year-old US citizen to kill himself while on a video call has been jailed for six years and four months.
Dylan Phelan, 21, from Morley, had been communicating with Travis Dyer, who was struggling with his mental health, for several months via the Discord online platform.
Leeds Crown Court was told Phelan, together with two other men based in the US, encouraged Dyer, who lived in Louisiana, to kill himself during a two-minute call which took place on 30 October 2024.
Judge Barry Cotter KC said Phelan had acted out of "morbid curiosity" and that Travis had needed "help and support but he got the very opposite of that from you".
Warning - this article contains distressing details relating to suicide and self-harm.
The court was told Phelan, and the two other men, known only as Mads and Rob, were members of a private server on Discord called 'Recovery4all' where they shared thoughts about mental health issues.
Andrew Petterson, prosecuting, said: "The name 'Recovery4all' was ironic as the members did not seek to help others with their mental health struggles.
"The deceased shared his suicidal thoughts within the group and his plans to take his own life."
Family handout
Travis Dyer, who lived in Louisiana, took his own life in October 2024
Petterson said there were individuals in that group who wanted Dyer to take his own life and encouraged him to do so.
The court was told the trio encouraged Dyer to spend all his money on drugs and alcohol so that he had no means of sustaining himself financially.
He was also encouraged to carve the initials of the men into his skin, with Phelan's name scratched onto his hip.
Petterson added: "This was a campaign of cruelty during which Travis Dyer was groomed into taking his own life."
The court was told Dyer had suffered a series of losses in his family, including losing his mother and young sister to drowning when he was a child.
His great-grandmother Vivian Mahoney, who followed proceedings from the US via a videolink, said in a victim statement: "Travis Dyer was a shy, smart and resilient young man who survived more tragedy than most endure in a century.
"He was deeply adored and had a bright future ahead of him.
"That future was stolen."
During the video call on 30 October, Petterson said Phelan, along with the others, could be heard encouraging Dyer to take his own life at various points.
After he did so, Phelan could be heard laughing in the background.
A post-mortem examination showed that Dyer had died from a gunshot wound.
The court heard that the next day another Discord user called Zachary Law, who was not part of the 'Recovery4all' group, received a message from Phelan saying that Dyer had taken his own life.
Law, who played no role in Dyer's death, then found other posts from Mads stating that the group had encouraged his suicide.
'Suffering before your eyes'
The court heard that Law then asked a third party who lived in the US to contact authorities to inform them what had happened.
Police later went to Dyer's home and found his body in the porch.
Phelan's role in Dyer's death came to light five months later after he was taken to Elland Road Police Station by his parents and confessed what had taken place.
They had been made aware of their son's involvement by a woman who Phelan had "bragged to" about Dyer's death.
Sentencing him, Judge Cotter said: "Travis was suffering before your eyes."
He said Phelan's actions were a "joint enterprise with others" which was a "serious aggravating factor".
"You were not the leader, but you took a very active part in it."
The judge said that although Dyer was "clearly very troubled, he did not have a stabilised intention to take his own life" and that he had shown "doubt" in the video call.
"His family were planning a fresh start," he said.
"It was encouragement from you and the group that was necessary to push him to the final terrible act."
An investigation into the other two men is under way by the US Department of Homeland Security.
During the sentencing, the judge urged anyone with information about those involved to contact US authorities.
He said one of the men in particular was "a very real danger to vulnerable people online having boasted of being a sociopath and of being involved in a number of suicides".
Judge Barry Cotter told the court the encouragement for Travis to take his own life went on "for about a month"
In their statement, Dyer's family said that Phelan did not act alone and "this groupthink turned a digital space into a hunting ground".
However, they praised the actions of an "online friend" who raised the alarm once he had heard about what had happened.
"It was this true friend who did the research to find our family and tell us the truth," they said.
"T…
Read the full article at BBC News (UK) →
United Kingdom