Murder victim Breck Bednar's family 'taunted online'

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Breck BednarImage source, Essex Police
Image caption,

Breck Bednar met his killer online before travelling to to meet him

The family of a teenage boy who was murdered in 2014 by a man he met through a gaming website have said his killer is taunting them from prison.

Lewis Daynes lured Breck Bednar, 14, from Caterham, Surrey, to his flat in Grays, Essex, and stabbed him to death.

Daynes is serving a life sentence, but Breck's sister Chloe, from Kent, said the killer had sent her disturbing messages on Snapchat.

Kent Police said officers had received a report of malicious communications.

Ms Bednar said the messages left her in shock, adding: "I received things like 'I know where your brother is buried', 'I'm going to smash his tombstone'."

The family believe there is nothing police can do because the messages were posted with a US company.

But Breck's mother Lorin LaFave said: "If the police need to have information about an account that's harmful... the police deserve that right to get information."

After Breck's murder, his family - who now live in Kent - formed The Breck Foundation, which warns youngsters of online dangers. , external

Martha Kirby, from the NSPCC, said: "We see it every day, children contacting Childline telling us about the abuse they're experiencing, so we know that there is much more than social media companies can do."

Snapchat said it did not comment on individual cases. Kent Police said its investigation was continuing.

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