Cyber bullying may be behind the latest in a spate of suicides related to a Victorian school.
Chanelle Rae, from Geelong's Western Heights College, took her life on Friday in another heartbreaking loss for the 1400-pupil school.
The 14-year-old is the fourth current or former student to take their life in the past six months, the Geelong Advertiser reports.
Chanelle's mother, Karen, told 3AW radio this morning that her daughter had been bullied online before her death.
"Friday night she was on the internet," she said.
"She came in and told me some message had come through and she wanted to die because of the message.
"I lay in bed with her and we just discussed it for about an hour. She left ... just as happy as ever.
"It was a passing comment, she didn’t come in and say 'I'm going to kill myself'.
"All I want is my baby back and it's not going to happen."
Ms Rae warned other parents of the dangers of online bullying.
"I want to tell people to keep their kids off the rotten internet — this horrible place," she said.
"This MSN [messenger] and these other things, the first thing the police said was they are getting bullied and have problems at school and they come and get on the internet and it's continuous and there's no break for them."
A spokesperson for Windows Live Messenger (which in Australia is part of the ninemsn network) said the program featured procedures to keep children safe online.
"Bullying happens in the offline world, and unfortunately in the online world too," Alex Parsons, director of MSN Products said.
"Parents need to get involved with what their kids are doing online, just like they do with other aspects of their kids' lives.
"If a child is being bullied on an instant messaging service or social networking site, they can block that contact and the person will no longer be able to communicate with them."
Chanelle was described as a beautiful and bubbly girl who was a devoted Geelong Cats supporter.
She was a member of the club's cheer squad and took a banner supporting defender Corey Enright to games.
Friends have flooded Chanelle's MySpace page with emotional tributes.
"Looking at all these pictures makes me wanna cry coz I miss you so much," Rebecca wrote.
"It's gonna be hard, I will never forget you beautiful," wrote Taylor.
* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or SANE Helpline on 1800 18 SANE (7263) or visit www.beyondblue.org.au.
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