A devastated mother has spoken out about the tragic death of her 12-year-old daughter, who died by suicide on December 29 after being relentlessly cyberbullied. Adiel Boyd, from Australia, had been the target of ongoing online harassment, which her mother, Victoria, believes played a major role in her daughter’s heartbreaking decision.

Ms Adiel, a bright and talented student at Aitkenvale State School, was the youngest of four children. Described as a “remarkable little girl” by her mother, Ms Adiel excelled academically and musically. She played several instruments and spoke three languages. Victoria Boyd described her daughter as “close to perfection,” saying how her warmth and intelligence left an impact on everyone she met. However, behind her accomplishments and loving nature, Ms Adiel was struggling with the devastating effects of online bullying.

Victoria Boyd talked about her deep concern over the dangers of social media, a space where parents often struggle to intervene. “Children are lost in social media, it’s the most dangerous tool for a parent,” she said, acknowledging how difficult it was to monitor Ms Adiel’s online interactions.

The bullying, which also occurred on school grounds, centered around jealousy and cruelty, said her mother. Victoria Boyd shared that the pre-teen was bullied by her friends for being “too beautiful” and that the harassment became overwhelming. “She just couldn’t comprehend,” Victoria Boyd added.

Ms Adiel’s older sister, Tameka, had started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover funeral expenses and support the grieving family. The campaign has already raised over $13,286 (Rs 11.3 lakh), and Tameka described her sister as someone who “left a birthmark on everybody that she knew in her 12 short years of life.”

Last year, a 10-year-old boy died by suicide in Indiana, US, after enduring persistent bullying at school. His family revealed that the bullying had started with mockery over his glasses and teeth and had escalated to physical abuse, including being beaten up on the school bus and having his glasses broken. The bullying had continued online, with threatening texts. Despite the family reporting the harassment to the school multiple times, the situation had not improved. The boy’s parents believed the bullying, particularly an incident in a school bathroom, had led to his tragic decision.

An American woman travelling on American Airlines Flight 2790 from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, to Charlotte, North Carolina, tragically passed away after experiencing a sudden illness on the flight, according to The New York Post.

The 41-year-old passenger, identified by family members as an Indiana mother of two, became ill during the flight, prompting the crew to divert the plane to Providenciales International Airport in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Despite the crew’s efforts to revive the woman and the prompt response of medical personnel upon landing, she was pronounced dead at the local hospital. The Royal Turks and Caicos Island Police Force confirmed the incident and stated that a post-mortem examination will be conducted to determine the cause of death, according to the news outlet.

“A commercial flight was diverted to the Turks and Caicos this evening after a female passenger fell ill mid-flight. At 6:12 pm, the Police Control Room received a call from the Air Traffic Control Tower requesting medical assistance for a 41-year-old female, who at the time was receiving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR),” reads the Facebook post.

While the official identification of the dead is pending, a woman on Facebook also identified the passenger as her sister-in-law.

“We are in disbelief, and our hearts are broken,” Stephanie Quinn wrote in response to the Royal Turks and Caicos Island Police Force’s announcement.

Quinn described her sister-in-law as the only girl out of five siblings and the mother of two “beautiful children with big hearts and straight as.”

“She is still down there, so please take good care of her as she ventures home,” pleaded Quinn, who did not immediately respond to messages Friday.