In April, 12-year-old Archie is found unconscious at home, and in August he dies of irreparable brain damage. His family thinks he took part in a Tiktok challenge. But this cannot be proven in the police investigation.

When 12-year-old Archie Battersbee was found seriously injured at home in April, his family suspected he was taking part in a Tiktok challenge. According to her, he had tried to hold his breath to pass out from the lack of oxygen. Archie eventually died on August 6 after life support was withdrawn. Several judges had ruled that the boy had suffered irreparable brain damage.

Since then, his mother has been trying to investigate the extent to which Tiktok is responsible for her son’s death. However, Essex’s chief medical examiner, Lincoln Brookes, said he could not find any evidence that Archie participated in the online “blackout challenge”.

At a preliminary hearing on Tuesday in Chelmsford, Essex, investigator Sarah Weeks read out a police report that said 12-year-old Archie had accessed Tiktok via his mobile phone on April 7. She said officers had not been able to determine what he was looking at and may never be able to. However, photos and videos downloaded from his phone did not provide any evidence that Archie had taken part in the blackout challenge, Weeks said.

Instead, officers found YouTube and internet search results related to his interests, such as various martial arts. After a “full forensic download” of the phone, it can also be said that there are “a number of messages that reflect Archie’s mood”. Coroner Brookes said: “We see bad vibes here, very bad vibes.”

The full investigation into what happened surrounding Archie’s death is ongoing. The focus of the investigation is the medical cause of death and his “mental state and intentions on April 7, 2022”. For that, the phone is said to be under further investigation, as well as Archie’s Mac and Xbox, which were confiscated by officials at the house on April 7. A report based on all the information gathered from Archie’s electronic devices is due to be available by December 16.