Teen from Bengaluru killed for iPhone by minors in UP

In a gruesome crime driven by the obsession with social media fame, a 19-year-old youth from Bengaluru was brutally murdered by two minors in Bahraich district, Uttar Pradesh. The accused killed him to steal his iPhone so they could make ‘high-quality reels’ and gain more likes online.

The victim, identified as Shadab (19), was a resident of Bengaluru and had come to his native village in Bahraich’s Nagur area to attend his uncle’s wedding. He went missing on June 20 and his family filed a missing complaint the next day. On June 21, his body was found in a garden well — his throat slit and head smashed with a stone.

Police said that during investigation, two boys aged 14 and 16 were detained and confessed to the crime. They told the police they knew Shadab owned an iPhone and had planned the murder four days in advance to steal it for making social media reels.

According to officials, the two minors lured Shadab to the outskirts of the village under the pretext of shooting a reel. There, they attacked him, slit his throat with a knife, and smashed his head with a stone. Police recovered the murder weapon, the stone, and the stolen iPhone.

Immediately after the murder, the accused and their family members fled the village. Police said a relative helped hide the murder weapon. All involved have now been arrested and sent to jail, while the minors have been sent to a juvenile home. A search is on for another suspect linked to the crime.

Locals and police have expressed shock over how social media addiction pushed minors to commit such a brutal murder.