RCMP say a recent incident of cyberbullying in Innisfail where local teens posted a rap threat-fuelled video on YouTube highlights the growing problem in the region.
Const. Rick Buisseret, the investigating officer and a former school resource officer, said since Facebook became really popular around 2008 cyberbullying has increased.
"I guess with the proliferation of social media sites kids are in contact with each other 24/7," he said.
"With Facebook, kids can send a message to one kid and everybody else jumps on the bandwagon. "
The constable said many incidents of cyberbullying go unreported to police, though he added kids are now realizing it is being taken more seriously.
He said the rap video is not the first case of local teens taking to social media to target other kids.
The video was posted to YouTube a couple of days after a 16-year-old male was assaulted by an 18-year-old. That assault was under investigation when the complainant did a search of his name on YouTube, Buisseret said.
The victim discovered the video featuring his alleged attacker and a 17-year-old rapping out a threat-filled song.
"Gonna beat you real quick, take the money and I dash," is one of the lyrics Buisseret transcribed from the video, which has since been taken off of YouTube. Many of the lyrics were vulgarity-ridden.
The 18-year-old appears dancing and at parts waving a knife. The 17-year-old also appears singing along at the chorus. Buisseret said the 17-year-old is a party to the offence.
The teen's father reported the video to the police.
The police have charged the 17-year-old with uttering threats to cause bodily harm. They are still looking for the 18-year-old.
"We're encountering difficulties with him turning himself in," Buisseret said.
Charges of uttering threats to cause bodily harm or death can end up with sentences of up to 18 months or five years in jail, depending on how the Crown chooses to proceed, either by indictment or summarily.
Consequences for cyberbullying don't always end in criminal charges, however. Buisseret said a handy tool is the Town of Innisfail's community standards bylaw, which contains a section on bullying and results in $150 and $250 fines for youth. The direction the police take with any reported incidents depends on the victim.
"It's whatever the kid wants," Buisseret said. Action can range from just taking the information for future reference to warnings to charges, depending on the severity of the incident.
People shouldn't worry that the police won't take the complaints seriously.
"I'll never tell a kid, ëIgnore it, it will go away,'" Buisseret said.
Statistics from an Ipsos Reid poll released in 2010 showed 8 per cent of Canadian parents with children aged seven to 17 reported their kids had been victims of cyberbullying. It jumped to 11 per cent if the kids were aged 16 to 17.
A Statistics Canada survey from 2009 of self-reported incidents of bullying said that 9 per cent of adults living in a household with children knew of a cyberbullying incident against one of their children.
Joanne Crook, the family school wellness supervisor for Chinook's Edge School Division, said reports of cyberbullying are seen in the division.
"I wouldn't say it's being reported in alarming numbers," Crook said. "I think that kids know that if they see something concerning Ö they need to bring that information forward."
The school division delivers programs about bullying and ensures messages about kindness and stepping forward are heard, she said.
"We always are striving to do character education and digital citizenship programming," Crook said.
There is a potential new program about bullying where Chinook's Edge would partner with the Red Cross on the horizon.
"We're always looking at initiatives," Crook said.
People participating in bullying incidents could see consequences within the school but Crook said they "also create a teaching moment.
"We certainly aim not to tolerate that kind of behaviour," she said.
Crook said students experiencing bullying can approach a teacher, the principal or school support workers for help.
