THE grieving family of suicide teenager Daniel Perry have called on David Cameron to crackdown on the cybercriminals who bullied their boy to death.
Breaking the family’s silence on a tragedy that has shocked the UK, Daniel’s uncle said the “scum” who blackmailed his nephew must be hunted down and prosecuted.
Ron Reilly revealed he went to 17-year-old Daniel’s bedroom on the night he died and found his laptop still on and showing the sickening Skype scam that drove him to jump from the Forth Road Bridge.
The 47-year-old, speaking on the family’s behalf and with the blessing of Daniel’s mother, Nicola, said: “David Cameron needs to answer the question about web safety.
“We need to be taking this very seriously.
“There has to be some way that those people can be reported easily to the police and dealt with accordingly.
“These various websites named recently need to be shut down if they can’t be policed properly.
“How many other parents have lost their child like this and never known the reasons why?
“They’re scum, we want the people responsible to be found and prosecuted.
“The threats are at the end of a keyboard, making people’s life a misery.
“People need to take note of what’s happening. Parents need to know what’s going on and it’s not just young kids – Daniel was 17.
“I’ve never heard of a scam like this before, tricking people and then demanding money.
“Until it actually happens to your own family, you don’t realise just how big a problem it is.
“You’ve just lost your 17-year-old nephew and you’re angry.
Mr Reilly, who runs a garage in Edinburgh, added: “On the night that Daniel died, me and my brother went into his room to see if we could find any clues.
“We found his laptop, it was still on and the last page he was on was open.
“I saw a picture of a girl who looked 16 or 17 and she was very pretty.
“They had been typing and swapping pictures with each other.
“Their relationship, if you can call it that, was more chatroom orientated, they were writing to each other a lot.
“I can’t go into specific details because of the police investigation.
“It was a financial scam, the girl wasn’t real, then they have demanded money from him.”
Speaking of the family’s loss, he added: “Nothing can make it easier, the fact that we have an idea as to why he did it and the fact that it was purely down to the internet is helpful.
“It’s torn a massive gap and a huge hole in the heart of the family.
“He was one of these boys who was full of life and always up to something. He was always making people laugh and was great to be around.
“He loved his job as an apprentice mechanic and had only recently started horse riding but he really enjoyed that too.
“The last time I saw him on the Saturday was at a family event and he was is an upbeat mood.”
“We would like to thank everyone who attended the night that Daniel died and tried to help him.
“They kept him going as long as they possibly could and we appreciate their efforts.
“If we can help save just one person’s life then that’s all we can really ask for.
Speaking yesterday Daniel’s mother, Nicola Perry, from Dunfermline, Fife, said: “Daniel thought he was talking to a girl from Illinois but it was stolen video footage that had been manipulated.
“They are clever people and I believe he didn’t give them any money, he was just scared and didn’t know what to do.
“On the night he died he walked out of his gran’s house at 7.30pm and text me at 7.45pm to say he would be home soon but he never made it.
“I’m horrified about what’s happened, I still can’t go into his bedroom and I keep expecting him to walk through the door and say ha, fooled you.
“Parents need to tell their children that nothing’s that bad that is worth taking your life over, anything can be fixed.
“We need to prevent this happening again.”
