Pro-suicide forum subject of first Ofcom probe, BBC understands

A pro-suicide forum is being investigated by the UK's online regulator, the BBC understands - its first using new powers under the Online Safety Act.

It comes after BBC News has been reporting on the forum for three years, linking it to at least 50 deaths in the UK.

The site has tens of thousands of members, including children, and users discuss methods of suicide, sharing instructions about how to buy and use a potentially deadly toxic chemical.

Last month, Ofcom gained powers to take action against sites hosting illegal material.

This first investigation could lead to fines or court orders against those running the forum.

Vlad Nikolin-Caisley, from Southampton, died in May last year, aged 17.

His parents have evidence that he was coached and encouraged to take his own life by members on the site, which we aren't naming.

He bought a poisonous chemical and followed instructions on how to end his life.

His parents, Anna and Graham, called on Ofcom to ban the site to save lives.

"At what point do we say enough is enough, because those young people did not deserve to die," says Anna. "The sooner they take action, the sooner we stop deaths linked to this forum," agrees Graham.

The Online Safety Act became law in October 2023 and Ofcom has spent the last 18 months drawing up guidelines and codes of practice for platforms to follow.

On 17 March, Ofcom got powers to take action against sites hosting illegal content, which includes assisting suicide.

All websites will now have to show they have systems in place to remove illegal material.

If they fail to do so, the regulator can get court orders to block platforms or impose fines of up to £18m.

An investigation is the first step before any enforcement action can take place.

But Ofcom faces a number of hurdles, including the fact that those running this forum are anonymous and that it is hosted in the US.

BBC News has revealed how more than 50 UK suicides have been connected to the forum.

In October 2023, the BBC confronted an American man, Lamarcus Small, who is believed to have set the site up in 2018. And in March last year, we also tracked down a poison seller in Ukraine who had been linked to the site.

The BBC also joined the forum using a false identity, compiling a list of the dead and exposing a partner section where members could find someone to die with.

Catherine Adenekan and daughter-in-law Melanie Saville have been campaigning to have the site shut down since Catherine's son, Joe, took his own life in April 2020.

He was a member of the forum for less than a week, but the 23-year-old learned how to buy and use a toxic chemical.

He left a note for his mother which read: "Please do your best in closing that website for anyone else."

Together they infiltrated the site, documented the numbers of deaths associated with it and identified people selling the chemical.

They have been lobbying ministers, their local MP and talking to the media in an effort to get the forum closed down. They say it has been an exhausting five years.

Melanie says: "Every day there are new people signing up to the website. There are people dying, ordering poisons online."

Asked about Ofcom's investigation, she says: "They've known long enough about this site and what's going on. They don't need to go through lengthy processes to be able to take it down. They need to take the action now."

BBC News has also revealed that at least six coroners have written to government departments since 2019 demanding action to shut the forum down.

We learned a number of police forces and the National Crime Agency are also aware of the forum, and have investigated deaths linked to it.

Vlad's parents Anna and Graham say inaction by the authorities cost their son's life.

"If they'd taken action before, our son would be upstairs on his computer. But we're here now, and he's not," Graham says.

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this story you can find information and support on the BBC Actionline website here.