A UK man has been told to prepare himself for prison after admitting to goading a “vulnerable” US citizen into shooting himself over a video call.
Dylan Phelan, 21, from Morley in West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to encouraging the suicide of Travis Dyer in Louisiana on 30 October 2024.
During the call, alongside two other people based in the US, Mr Dyer was encouraged to kill himself with a shotgun, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.
Phelan appeared at Leeds Crown Court on Wednesday.
He pleaded guilty to one charge of assisting suicide, with the court told it involved Phelan “together with others… encouraging Travis Dyer to kill himself by shooting”.
Phelan had been communicating with Mr Dyer for several months through Discord, the CPS said
The encouragement was not an isolated incident, and in the months before his death, Mr Dyer was subjected to sustained and serious encouragement to self-harm by members of the online group, a police investigation revealed.
Mr Dyer was known to be vulnerable and struggling with his mental health. The 21-year-old, who lived in Theriot, Louisiana, had lost his mother and younger sister in a car crash 10 years before his own death.
In March last year, Phelan attended Elland Road Police Station in Leeds with his parents and told officers he had taken part in a video call.
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He also told police he had “become drawn to the darker groups on Discord” and “accepted that his words were a factor in the suicide”.
‘Travis, we miss you’
A tribute posted by his great-grandmother said: “Travis, We miss you… you were so unfortunate to have had so many tragedies in your young life. It was totally unfair for you.”
Phelan’s phone was also found to have an indecent image of a child and other extreme pornography images, a CPS spokesperson said.
Phelan pleaded guilty at a hearing last month to one count of making an indecent image of a child in November 2024 and three counts of possessing extreme pornography in March 2025.
Judge Robin Mairs adjourned the case until 22 May for sentencing and bailed Phelan until then.
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However, he will not be allowed to have a device capable of accessing the internet.
The sentencing hearing will take place in the afternoon so Mr Dyer’s family can attend by video-link.
The judge told Phelan to “Prepare yourself for custody”.
Alex Johnson, senior specialist prosecutor in the CPS Special Crime Division, said: “This was a deeply disturbing case involving the exploitation of a vulnerable young man through an online platform.
“Dylan Phelan did not merely witness what happened – he actively participated in goading Travis Dyer to take his own life, intending that he would do so.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email [email protected] in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK
