A teenager is believed to have killed himself after sick trolls bullied him over naked images and cruelly mocked him through his XBox.
The mum of aspiring actor Joel Devine believes he was taunted online in the weeks leading up to his death in April.
And the ECHO has learnt that, just before his death, the much-loved Liverpool FC fan had mysteriously asked his mum Ruth Crockett for a lump sum of money, but he refused to reveal why.
She believes an alleged blackmail, centred around his leaked naked photos, occurred.
The question of whether there were possible criminal offences involved is being probed by detectives at Merseyside Police. An inquest is also due in November.
Mrs Crockett told the ECHO: "Joel was being bullied through his game console.
"Three days before he died, he asked me for a lump sum of money.
"It was totally out of the blue.
"I just thought he wanted to go out and buy some new clothes, but what I didn't know at the time was he was getting blackmailed.
"We were due to go to Spain in June.
"I saw how bullies were calling him awful names, and urged him to block them on social media.
"I find out that naked images of Joel were being circulated.
"Joel told me it wasn't him, but if I'd have known how serious it was I would have gone straight to the police.
"I saw how he seemed to get quieter the day before he died."
Joel, a talented drama student who had also studied business administration, was found unconscious in his bedroom by his mum at their home in Wavertree.
The Bank View High School pupil, in Fazakerley, had spoken to his dad Jimmy that night and "had seemed fine," the parent said.
Mrs Crockett added: "I'm still in shock, I'll never recover from this...
"I miss Joel every day, there are no words which can describe the heartache that I feel.
"All I can pray for is for justice - it's all I can hope for."
Joel, who had Asperger's syndrome, has been described by his mum as "vulnerable."
She wants the Xbox messages to be studied by police, but fears those taunts were not saved and are now lost forever as possible evidence.
An inquest into Joel's death was adjourned earlier this year with the full inquest set to take place this November.
Joel was planning to study sports science at college this September after quitting a drama course.
His mum, 52, who used to work as a carer, said her son fell victim to "snakes" who allegedly took advantage of him.
In a post on Facebook in August, she wrote: "My boy, Joel, could see no badness in anyone.
"He was vulnerable, he wanted to be loved and accepted and on some occasions fell prey to people who stole from him who lied in order to make a quick buck.
"Joel’s letdowns and disappointments were many.
"As a mother, I allowed my beautiful son some freedom in this wicked world he didn’t understand or knew very little about.
"His purity and innocence made him so special, but for others was seen as an easy target."
He left school with 11 GCSEs, he attained NVQ Level 1 and 2 in business administration.
An 18-year-old boy, from Croxteth, was arrested on suspicion of an offence of malicious communications in July and released on bail.
