Teenage TikTok star dies in prank gone wrong

The video still made it on to social media. Photo / File

Warning: This article discusses suicide and could be distressing for some people.

A teenage TikTok star has "died on the spot" in a video prank gone wrong, killing himself instantly after mixing up a loaded weapon for a viral stunt.

Officials told AFP the 19-year-old from Pakistan's Swat Valley was a rising star on the platform, building up a 8,000-strong following on the video-sharing application.

The young man, known only as Hamidullah, had his friends film him as he jokingly aimed a gun he thought was unloaded to his head. He then allegedly pulled the trigger and died instantly.

"This boy was pretending to commit suicide with a loaded pistol. He put the gun on his head and then it suddenly misfired," a senior police official told local media.

"The unfortunate youngster died on the spot as he was directly hit in the head. There was no chance of survival."

Incredibly, the morbid video still made it online after the teenager's unfortunate demise.

"At TikTok, we have no higher priority than protecting the safety of our community, and content that promotes or glorifies dangerous behavior is strictly prohibited and promptly removed to prevent it from becoming a trend on our platform," an earlier statement from TikTok read.

"We also block related hashtags and searches to discourage people from participating in or sharing potentially dangerous content."

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