An inquest has heard that a 14-year-old girl who is believed to have taken her own life was allegedly mocked by boys in a Snapchat group chat. Mia Janin, a Year 10 pupil at the Jewish Free School (JFS) in Kenton, north-west London, was found dead at her family home in Harrow on 12 March 2021.
Her father, Mariano Janin, has said he believes she was cyberbullied by other pupils. Statements from Mia's friends, read out at Barnet Coroner's Court, said that one of her TikTok videos was shared to a Snapchat group run by male pupils, who made fun of her. One child said the boys also shared nude photos of girls and Photoshopped girls' faces onto pornographic images.
The child said they spoke to Mia the day before she died, and she asked: 'If you died would people care about you the next day?' They said they laughed it off. Another friend said Mia received many negative comments on her TikTok after returning to school following Covid restrictions.
Mr Janin told the inquest that Mia asked to move schools after coming home on 11 March. Her mother, Marisa, who has since died, agreed to homeschool her for the rest of the year and look into a new school. Mia went to bed and was found dead hours later.
Area coroner Tony Murphy said there was no evidence that any images of Mia had been shared in the group chat apart from the TikTok. The inquest heard that Rabbi Howard Cohen, former deputy head at JFS, told the boys to close the group after Mia's death. JFS maintains it was unaware of the group chat before her death.
