When I research my thrillers, I’m often propelled head first down rabbit holes, and there was never one so long, winding and dark as that of online armchair investigators, sometimes known as citizen sleuths. Let’s begin by defining what, and who, these people are. First, they are not necessarily from police backgrounds, but are mostly everyday people who take it upon themselves to investigate a crime from afar. They will have rarely attended crime scenes and will have limited access to police reports. As a whole, they work as part of a team and become a collective who utilise their time and internet skills, which means their evidence and resources are wider - sometimes even than the police.
Since the inception of the internet, online collective intelligence has been used on websites and social media to dig out the truth of people and situations. On the face, it can feel like a dedicated community of do-gooders, however more often than not, crowds of people will swing on the lowest common denominator, thus those with dark intentions can influence others into a mob mentality; making even the most noble of people descend into a spiral of gossip and hate that ultimately goes against their true natures.
Being part of important investigations can offer a false sense of grandeur along with an almost addictive form of validation akin to seeing likes gather on social media posts – this then fuels a behaviour that might have otherwise dissipated. Pitchforks and torches in hand, righteous folks storm forward on a mission, without paying heed to where they tread and on who they tread upon. To a degree, this can be observed in The Stanford Prison Experiment that was conducted by Philip Zimbardo in 1971. Normal young men were recruited to re-create a prison environment and were randomly selected as either prisoner or guard. The whole thing was called off after just six days as the guards were suddenly employing cruel and out of character behaviour towards the prisoners – give someone a bit of power, and a group to remain faceless and in, and darkness can seep through even the most gentle of souls.
The most recent example I can give of online armchair detectives is the Netflix documentary Don’t F*ck with Cats. An online group from the USA banded together on social media to identify a sick man who posted disturbing videos of animal abuse on YouTube before graduating to killing his first human victim. Although not stopping said killer start his spree, they were, in my opinion, instrumental in saving further lives. They were tireless in their efforts and a prime example of those hard-working people who use all the tools at their disposal and leave no digital rock unturned to solve the puzzle of the killer’s identity. Ironically, if the evidence in the documentary is to be believed, the online armchair investigators didn’t actually identify the killer, but simply lured him into the spotlight, and so although not technically unmasking him, gave him the perfect ego-tripping opportunity to unmask himself. But; well, there’s always a but isn’t there, on their journey for justice, they also pointed a finger at the wrong man. This man had mental health issues and tragically committed suicide.
Another famous case is the 2013 USA Boston Bombing. When news hit that a bomb had been detonated at the Boston Marathon, people were shocked and justifiably outraged. With so many photos being taken on the day of runners and crowds, it didn’t take long for potential online investigators to start crowdsourcing photos to try to spot the man carrying the suspicious bag. And spot them they did. They even identified them. Then they doxxed them online, exposing names and addresses of innocent people to justice-hungry crowds, ruining lives and creating situations just as dangerous as the bomb itself. The authorities eventually caught the bombers. They were not anyone named online.
In my newest thriller, The 13th Girl, a band of online armchair detectives come together to identify a serial killer calling himself the Righteous Wraith. Naming themselves Wraith Finders, they set about pointing the finger at suspect Andy, who they are certain is the killer. They’ve crowd sourced evidence, they have created believable timelines and, after all, he is a little creepy. But the police are not interested in their ‘evidence’ so they being to turn up at his work and home. Losing his job and wife, and with the wraith still dropping bodies, Andy seeks the professional advice of a psychologist. This is where he meets our loveable oddball protagonist Dee, who has her own tragic back story of mental health issues. Knowing what it’s like to be accused of something she didn’t do, Dee sets about filming a true crime documentary to prove Andy’s innocence – but there’s no smoke without fire, and the deeper down that rabbit hole she gets, the more alone she feels. After all, if she finds out who the wraith is, who would believe her?
Even after writing the book, I still haven’t decided on whether online armchair investigators are friend or foe. They can do good, but can also cause trouble. Mob mentality can taint efforts. However, if we were to all stop caring what is happening in the world, and getting involved, where would that leave us?
The 13th Girl by N V Peacock (Hera Books) Out Now
12 girls gone. Can she save The 13th Girl? After decades in a mental health hospital, Dee knows that people find her creepy – because they tell her so. Once the reluctant star of an infamous documentary, she is trying to blend back into the outside world. But when a string of local girls disappear, only to be found dead days later, she becomes fixated on the case and decides to film her own True Crime documentary There is a serial killer on the loose - The Righteous Wraith. Girls are being found one by one, their bodies gruesomely staged in the most innocent public spaces. With the killer taunting the police and public fear mounting, the armchair detectives begin pointing fingers at one suspect. But for Dee, something isn’t adding up. She knows what it’s like to be accused of something that you didn’t do. She resolves to prove his innocence, unmask the real killer, and save The 13th Girl. But who will believe her?
N V Peacock can be found on FaceBook and she can also be found on X @NickyP_author.
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