TikTok star begs for answers as 18-year-old son murdered

A TikTok star has appealed to her followers to help her find the person who killed her son the day before his 19th birthday.

“My son was taken from us last night by the hands of another individual at just 18 years old. He would be 19 today but someone else made the decision to end my [son’s] life,” Ophelia Nichols wrote on Facebook on Saturday.

Her son Randon Lee was fatally shot on Friday near a gas station in Prichard, Alabama.

“They are walking around in my town, living and breathing while my son is not. While me and my family are grieving a loss that no mother should ever have to feel, they are free,” she said, while sharing a picture of her son.

“I have been up all night with this unrecognisable feeling of hatred in my heart for the person who ended my son’s life and I can’t promise that will ever go away,” wrote Ms Nichols.

“I know the days ahead are completely unknown but the only hope I have is that this person is found and prosecuted for the murder of my son.”

Known as Mama Tot, with the handle @shoelover99, Ms Nichols also made a similar request on TikTok. “There’s almost 7 million people that follow me. Somebody’s got to know something,” she said as she spoke through the tears.

While the police have released few details on his killing, Ms Nichols commented on her TikTok post that authorities “have leads on [two] individuals”.

A GoFundMe page has also been set up for Nichols and her family, where they have raised up to $281,505 (£230,000).