Dangers of Online Dating: How a Tinder Date Ended in Tragedy

By Muhammad Saleem

One cannot believe that forming  friendships through dating apps could land anyone in deep trouble. But this is exactly what happened to a girl who met a man on the Tinder dating app.  

The man who claimed her life is named Ethan. He had good relationships with his colleagues and family, but one incident in his life changed everything and severely impacted his mental health.

Cracks in the Foundation: A Failing Marriage

Ethan works at a concrete company, where his clients love him, and his coworkers treat him well. Ethan’s life seemed peaceful and prosperous, but his personal life wasn’t so good. He was married, and initially, his marriage was happy, but over time, small issues started to arise. These problems began to affect his mental state, and one day, his wife suggested he seek help from a doctor. However, Ethan’s refusal made things worse.

As time passed, their marital life started heading towards disaster, and Ethan’s wife eventually left him. This was a huge shock for Ethan, as his wife had left him. He was plagued with a storm of questions about why she left. These questions further affected his mental state.

A Descent into Darkness: Isolation and Anger

Soon, his friends and coworkers also began to notice changes in him because he was no longer the same person they knew. Ethan had become a completely different person. He started having violent thoughts about women and began expressing these thoughts loudly at work, which scared everyone around him. His friends and coworkers advised him to calm down and told him everything would be okay. But Ethan’s condition kept worsening.

One day, Ethan had a fight with a female coworker and was fired from his job. This situation brought a new wave of anger and frustration in him. Ethan gradually isolated himself from his family and friends, leading to loneliness, which only intensified his frustration and despair. Eventually, he reached a point of no return.

A Tinder Date Gone Wrong: Rejection and Obsession

One day, Ethan was on Instagram and came across a woman he had worked with in his youth. Her name was Autumn. He started chatting with her in her DMs, and soon they began talking comfortably. Ethan asked to meet her the next day, but Autumn told him she wasn’t free.

A few days later, Ethan messaged her again for a meeting, but Autumn again made an excuse, saying she was busy. In reality, Autumn wanted to avoid him because she wasn’t interested in Ethan, but he couldn’t understand this. Despite her refusals, Ethan kept messaging her, which made Autumn uncomfortable, and she eventually stopped responding.

A week later, Ethan sent her another message but got no reply. He sent messages again after two weeks and then after two months, but Autumn didn’t respond. This made Ethan angry, and strange thoughts about women began to fill his mind because his heart was broken for the second time, and his patience had run out.

He was now ready to go to any lengths to free himself from these painful feelings. For him, the only way out of this situation was to respond harshly to all the actions that had caused him pain and failure.

A Tinder Match: A New Hope, a Dangerous Encounter

Ethan decided to take a new step in his life. He opened his phone, went on the Tinder app, and started swiping to find a girl. Suddenly, a match appeared. Her name was Ashlyn, and she was 25 years old. She worked with special needs children and had a personality that immediately attracted Ethan.

Both started chatting and quickly decided they should meet without wasting any time. The very next day, they met up and went to a nearby bar where they drank, enjoyed each other’s company, and spent four hours together, having a great time. Ashlyn and Ethan felt very comfortable in each other’s company.

After leaving the bar, they went back to Ethan’s house and watched a movie. When the movie ended, they grew even closer. After a while, they went to bed. On his bed, Ethan thought not all women had a negative attitude towards him.

A Descent into Violence: A Night of Terror

But at 3 a.m., in the deep silence of the night, Ethan woke up to see Ashlyn sleeping peacefully beside him. At that moment, Ethan’s thoughts began to change. Suddenly, a surge of intensity overwhelmed him, and he tried to control it but failed.

He immediately started strangling Ashlyn, waking her up. She tried to protect herself, but Ethan’s grip was too strong for her to escape. Her breath started to falter, and her body began to struggle as Ethan attempted to take her life. Moments later, he let go, and Ashlyn began taking deep breaths to regain her breath, but this was of no use because Ethan had already run to the kitchen and returned with a knife. He stabbed her multiple times, leaving her badly injured.

The Aftermath: Confession and Consequence

Ashlyn was in terrible condition and was taking her last breaths when Ethan called 911 and said, “I have killed someone, and now I’m going to kill myself.” The 911 operator immediately sent the police, who arrived at Ethan’s house within minutes. They found Ashlyn covered in blood. The police checked her pulse, which had already stopped due to the attack, and Ashlyn had passed away.

The police asked Ethan what had happened. He narrated his story: they had met on Tinder, went out, and after watching a movie at his house, everything happened. The police asked, “Did you attack her unprovoked?” Ethan replied, “Yes.” The police arrested him.

Police conducted a thorough investigation into the incident and charged him with first-degree murder charges. Following the evidence, the court sentenced him to fifteen years in prison. 

The Dangers of Online Dating

This story teaches us a powerful lesson: to remain extremely cautious when forming relationships with people through social media and dating apps.