Snapchat sued in case alleging the platform is responsible for 12-year-old’s rape The family of a Missouri teenager is suing Snapchat parent company Snap, claiming the social media platform facilitated her rape as a 12-year-old. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Missouri state court, alleges that Snapchat’s features such as Quick Add and Snap Map enabled a 25-year-old named Gabriel Joel Valentin-Rios to groom and abuse the girl, referred to as J.F. The suit also names Valentin-Rios as a defendant. He recently pleaded guilty to one count of statutory rape or attempted statutory rape and one count of enticement or attempted enticement of a child, receiving an 18-year sentence. This case is part of a growing wave of lawsuits seeking to hold Snapchat accountable for sexual abuse incidents involving young users. Multiple families have previously sued the platform with similar claims, and several men have been sentenced for abusing minors they connected with on Snapchat. In 2024, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sued Snap, alleging its policies and features facilitate child sexual exploitation. Snap’s rules prohibit sexual exploitation, and the company claims it uses automated and human review systems to prevent abuse and remove harmful accounts. It has also introduced features designed to limit adult strangers from contacting minors. In response to the New Mexico lawsuit, Snap told the Associated Press: “We continue to evolve our safety mechanisms and policies, from leveraging advanced technology to detect and block certain activity, to prohibiting friending from suspicious accounts, to working alongside law enforcement and government agencies.#missouri #snapchat #social_media_victims_law_center #gabriel_joel_valentinrios #new_mexico_attorney_general_ral_torrez
Snap Sued Over Rape of Minor Linked to Adult Attacker on Snapchat The parents of a 12-year-old girl who was raped by an adult stranger she met on Snapchat have filed a lawsuit against the company’s parent, Snap, and the attacker in a Missouri State court. The case, filed on June 24, 2026, alleges that Snap failed to disable harmful features in its app or warn parents about risks posed by its platform. The girl, who began using Snapchat in 2021 at age 11 without her parents’ knowledge, is at the center of the legal action, which claims the app’s design enabled the predator to exploit her. According to the lawsuit, the girl did not remember the birth date she provided when creating her account, and children were aware they could bypass the app’s minimum age requirement of 13. The attacker, identified as Mr. Valentin-Rios, used Snap’s Snap Maps feature to obtain the girl’s home address without her knowledge. The lawsuit states that Valentin-Rios groomed the girl, falsely presenting himself as a 17-year-old high school student rather than a 25-year-old man. He eventually convinced her to meet him in person, where he raped her. Valentin-Rios pleaded guilty to statutory rape and is currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in Missouri. The lawsuit asserts that Snap was aware Valentin-Rios had multiple accounts, violating the app’s policies, including one used to target teenage girls. The company did not respond to a comment request on June 24, 2026. The girl, now diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety, and depression, is the focus of the plaintiffs’ demands for unspecified damages and a court order compelling Snap to address practices that endanger children.#missouri #snap #snapchat #valentinrios #social_media_victims_law_center
