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From Gabby Petito to Claire Miller case: 5 times TikTok users assisted in crime investigations

If you’ve seen Netflix’s 'Clickbait', you’ll know what we mean when we say social media can be powerful when it comes to solving crime cases

Social media can be useful in solving crimes. However, social media engagement in true crime isn't limited to fictional TV dramas; you see it all the time in real life. Some TikTok accounts are completely dedicated to true crime events in order to raise awareness. Because TikTok is so easy to go viral, these accounts are extremely helpful at spreading the word about a cold case or missing person.

Similarly, the site has over 60 million active creators. Where better to gather a community of fresh-faced amateur investigators who might just offer a new viewpoint on a case than TikTok? With that said, let's take a look at 5 strange cases that TikTok assisted in resolving.

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5 times TikTok users helped solve crime cases

Here are some criminal cases that went viral on TikTok and helped the police collect clues for the investigation.

Killing of Gabby Petito

If you've been following the case of Gabby Petito, 22, you'll know that social media has played a critical role in the investigation. Petito used Instagram to capture her road trip with her fiance, Brian Laundrie, giving police a sequence of events leading up to her death.

A slew of TikTok users were actively attempting to piece together details about the case. The hashtag #GabbyPetito received over 500 million views, with fans breaking down footage and proposing their own hypotheses.

TikTok not only brought attention to the Petito case, but it also introduced TikToker Miranda Baker. Baker claimed she picked up Brian Laundrie, stating, "He kind of hurried out of the car, and then was like, 'I'm going to find someone else to hitchhike,' and we're like, okay." It was a weird situation." It was then revealed that Brian Laundrie confessed to killing Petito before shooting himself dead.

The disappearance of Sofia Juarez

Although the case of Sofia Juarez is still unsolved at the time of publication, TikTok did present detectives with a lead earlier in the year. Juarez, 4, went missing in 2003 after being abducted outside her home in Kennewick, Washington.

A TikTok video went viral in May 2021 when a 22-year-old woman claimed (in Spanish) that she had been kidnapped. Although the crime is yet to be solved, Kennewick police did say that they have a new lead regarding a 'very credible witness'.

The 'suitcase murders' of Jessica Lewis and Austin 'Cash' Wenner

The 'suitcase murders' of Jessica Lewis and Austin Wenner, discovered last year in 2020, may ring a bell. If you're not familiar, a bunch of adolescents were making a TikTok video and using the Randonautica app, which took them to a random place in Seattle.

Later, the TikTokers uncovered a suitcase, which was videotaped and posted to TikTok. It was later discovered that the luggage contained the bodies of Jessica Lewis and Austin Wenner, who were both murdered. Since then, the TikTok video has been deleted from the platform. Michael Dudley of Burien, near Seattle, was convicted of killing Lewis, 35, and Wenner, 27. In June 2020, Dudley, 64, shot and mutilated the victims before disposing of their remains in suitcases. The TikTokers who found the bodies immediately called the police which led to an investigation.

The disappearance of Alissa Turney

In 2020, it was stated that a TikTok campaign could aid in the investigation of Alissa Turney's 2001 disappearance. Turney's half-sister, Sarah, resorted to TikTok to raise the notice of the matter. Sarah emphasized her bond with Alissa by uploading childhood movies and footage of them together with their stepfather Michael Turney.

Michael Turney was eventually charged with second-degree homicide, according to reports. Sarah says in a video, "When haters talk smack about you joining TikTok, but it gets your sister's case in the news."

Claire Miller Case 

Claire Miller's case was not necessarily solved via TikTok, but the platform did boost awareness and intensify police focus on the adolescent. Miller, 14, allegedly confessed to killing her wheelchair-bound older sister Helen Miller. According to Insider, Claire's TikTok videos began to emerge on users' FYPs, drawing a lot of attention to the case. Miller had amassed an impressive following of around 22,000 on TikTok performing in short lip-synch videos. Although her videos were fun and jovial, other videos of hers are far more ominous. In one video, she reportedly said, "I Michael Myers'ed my sister."

While Miller’s TikTok page was taken down after her arrest boosted its following, users had already captured her footage and reposted it to their own pages. According to the Daily Mail, one of these videos showed a bloody latex glove and a plush giraffe covered in blood. Ultimately, whether or not Miller took these particular videos herself remains a mystery.