Editor’s note (Tuesday, May 6, 2025, 4 p.m. ET) The homeowner was arrested on a murder charge, the sheriff’s office said in an update Tuesday. Go here for updates.
An 18-year-old high school senior died in a shooting early Saturday that may have resulted from a TikTok prank.
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WATCH HEREAbout 3 a.m. Saturday — the day of the Massaponax High School prom — a homeowner fatally shot Michael Bosworth Jr. on McKenzie Lane in Spotsylvania County, Virginia.
The homeowner said Bosworth and two other teenagers were trying to break into the home.
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SIGN UP One of the other teens, who was grazed by a bullet, told detectives they weren’t breaking in to steal anything. They said they were recording ding-dong ditch pranks for TikTok videos – ringing doorbells and then running away.
A detective tracked down the third teen, who was not shot. That teen gave the same account and offered their phone to show a similar video shot earlier that night.
The Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office hasn’t said whether that story checks out. The Spotsylvania County commonwealth’s attorney is reviewing the evidence to determine if charges are appropriate or if the homeowner was justifiable in opening fire. The homeowner has not been named or charged with any crime.
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Bosworth, who was a senior at Massaponax High, played lacrosse and football and wrestled, his stepfather said, saying their family is heartbroken.
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