A 16-year-old Florida girl who was reported missing has been killed and dismembered after meeting a man on social media, authorities confirmed.
Police say Miranda Corsette, 16, was lured through a social media app by 35-year-old Steven Gress on Valentine’s Day. After meeting him, Miranda initially returned home but went back to his house the following day. She remained there with Gress and his girlfriend, 37-year-old Michelle Brandes, until tragedy struck.
According to investigators, a dispute occurred in the home on February 20, resulting in Miranda being severely beaten. Authorities now believe that she was killed sometime between February 20 and February 24. Following her murder, Gress allegedly placed her body in a car, transported it to another location, and dismembered it before dumping her remains in a dumpster in another county.
Law enforcement is now working to recover Miranda’s body after locating the dumpster. Evidence discovered at Gress’s home confirmed the body had been dismembered.
Gress was already in custody on unrelated charges after he was arrested on March 5 for pointing a harpoon at his girlfriend and drug possession. Following the investigation, he now faces an additional kidnapping charge related to Miranda’s disappearance.
The case remains under investigation as authorities work to locate Miranda’s remains and gather more evidence.
Last month, a 14-year-old Brazilian boy, Davi Nunes Moreira, tragically died after injecting himself with a mixture of crushed butterfly remains and water, possibly as part of a dangerous social media challenge. The incident has raised concerns about the influence of online trends on youth behavior.
Moreira, a resident of Vitória da Conquista, reportedly mixed the remains of a dead butterfly with water and injected the concoction into his leg. Shortly thereafter, he began experiencing severe symptoms, including vomiting and difficulty walking. Initially, he told his father that he had injured himself while playing. However, as his condition worsened, he confessed to the injection. His father discovered a syringe hidden under the boy’s pillow, further confirming the act. Moreira was admitted to a local hospital and later transferred to a facility in Vitoria de Conquista, where he succumbed to his injuries after a week of intense pain.
