Extortion of mentally-disabled Chick-fil-A worker in NC prompted his suicide, records say
Editor’s note: This article discusses suicide and suicidal ideation. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org
A Charlotte man federal prosecutors classified as “mentally disabled” took his life after two South Carolina residents stole his phone and went on a three-day barrage of cyberstalking and threatening the man and his family, according to a federal indictment Tuesday.
Trysten Anthony Cullon, 26, and Jade Ashlynn Stone, 25, are accused of targeting the man, identified only as “C.T.,” at his workplace — a Charlotte Chick-fil-A — and eventually sending him into “substantial emotional distress” that caused his suicide.
C.T. was a “vulnerable victim” who functioned at a fourth-grade reading level and second-grade math level, according to court records.
He “needed oversight and direction in his daily activities,” according to the indictment. He lived with his father, and his mother helped him manage his bank account because “he was unable to budget money, count change, or comprehend how much things cost.”
On Sept. 5, Cullon asked to use C.T.’s phone inside the fast-food restaurant before stealing it and getting away in Stone’s car, according to an indictment filed in the U.S District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. Less than an hour later, C.T.’s mother — who lives in Florida — texted the stolen phone:
“To the person that has this phone please return it to [C.T.] at Chick-fil-a or a manager there. [C.T.] is very upset and management is trying to help him get it back. This is his mother.”
After two days, Cullon and Stone on Sept. 7 responded on a phone they had stolen from a Fort Mill, S.C., Planet Fitness about an hour before they arrived at Chick-fil-A, records say.
“Your son is a pervert and I’m going to let his job and everyone else in his family know that. How dare he work at a Christian establishment while he is going to brothels and asking hundreds of women online to have sex. Unless you want me to ruin him and embarrass you I suggest you provide some compensation. He will lose everything. The things I saw were disgusting and disturbing.”
The two transferred money from C.T.’s PayPal, Cash App and bank account to themselves, labeling the transfers as rent, gas and car payment. They later sent similar threatening messages to C.T.’s brother, according to the indictment, and requested $300.
If they didn’t receive the money, they said, they would “expose this information” to Chick-fil-A’s manager and corporate headquarters.
C.T.’s family shared the messages with C.T. He reportedly “feared he would get fired or arrested,” and one day later, on Sept. 8, he died by suicide inside his home — where he lived with his father.
Cullon and Stone each face a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison for wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to commit extortion and conspiracy to commit cyberstalking.
According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, “research shows no one takes their life for a single reason, but rather a combination of factors.” Suicide, the foundation reported, is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States.
If you are in crisis, please call, text or chat with the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.
This story was originally published December 11, 2024 at 3:24 PM.
