Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Friday, May 24, 2013
(INDIANAPOLIS) - An Indianapolis teenager is in big trouble for cyber bullying using her social media account.
Steve Jefferson of WTHR reports that several of her classmates say she threatened to beat up classmates, unless they paid her off.
Unique Bridgeman says her 11-year-old daughter was one of at least five students at her school that weren't just bullied, they were forced to pay up or get beat up. She says she knew something was wrong when her sixth grade daughter not only didn't want to attend Charles Warren Fairbanks School (IPS School #105), she became afraid to even set foot on the school bus.
The problem was a 13-year-old girl threatening over Facebook to beat up younger students if they didn't bring her money
.
Bridgeman's suspicions grew when her daughter started asking for $5, $10, $15.
Bridgeman says her daughter wanting to bring money to school wasn't the only red flag. Her behavior changed, her grades were falling and she was afraid.
What worries Bridgeman the most is the growing number of suicides involving young people, where bullying may have been a contributing factor. She hopes every parent has had a heart-to-heart talk with their kids about reporting bullies, especially at school.
"One of the victims was brave enough to share those Facebook messages with their teacher and that's just what IPS wants students to do - report bullying to an adult right away.
IPS has a zero tolerance for bullying of any kind.
The 13-year-old girl got suspended for five days the first time for bullying, returned to school and did it a second time and is suspended again.
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