“He had a good sense of humor and a great wit about him,” the father, Nnamdi Ohaeri Sr., told KTLA in remembrance of his son. “We came home, they showered, we were watching the Grammys, he was excited that Kendrick Lamar was sweeping all the categories.”

Deuce was pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in his room. As KTLA reported, the boy was later pronounced dead and, at the time, it appeared he had taken his own life.”

His parents started investigating what could have led to his death as it did not make sense to them because he “was always looking toward the future and excited about everything that lay ahead.”

“I heard something where this young person tried to make themselves pass out and I guess they came back from it,” his father said.

My heart is broken for my friend Nnamdi and his family as they deal with the tragic loss of their 13 year old son, Nnamdi Deuce Ohaeri. I’ll never forget holding Deuce at the hospital when he was born. Life is short. Tell people you love them. Hold them close. The world is darker… pic.twitter.com/73FdfRCPBx

— George Anagnostopoulos (@CoachAgno) February 5, 2025

He didn’t have any social media accounts and even had strict parental control on his phone, so his parents believe he learned about the game at school. The father told the news outlet that he has always been “mindful of influences and talking about, ‘Don’t do drugs and make good decisions,’” to his four sons. “But we don’t talk about not following social media trends or playing social media games and maybe we need to.”

The boy’s parents are now hoping to spread the word about their son’s death in the hopes of warning other parents of potential dangerous games and online challenges. In fact, other children have died in similar circumstances as Deuce.

The “blackout challenge” is a game that encourages people to hold their breath until they pass out. The challenge exists on TikTok but has been circulating online for years. At least 82 children died after partaking in a similar online game, according to a 2008 report published by the CDC. It also indicates that fatalities were found to be more common in boys from ages 11 to 16.

“Because most parents in the study had not heard of the choking game, we hope to raise awareness of the choking game among parents, health care providers, and educators, so they can recognize warning signs of the activity,” the study’s lead author Robin L. Toblin, Ph.D., M.P.H., said. “This is especially important because children themselves may not appreciate the dangers of this activity.”

The report lists several potential signs that a child may be engaging in a choking game, which the report also refers to as “pass–out game” or “space monkey.”

Signs include bloodshot eyes, marks on the neck, intense headaches, disorientation after time spent alone, ropes, scarves and belts tied to bedroom furniture or doorknobs or found knotted on the floor, as well as an unexplained presence of things like dog leashes, choke collars and bungee cords.

Some parents have sued TikTok after their child died while doing the “blackout challenge.” They say the app is to blame for its role in presenting this type of content to children.

“TikTok needs to control what it shows on its platform,” the mother of Tristan Casson—a British boy of 12-years-old who died after taking part in the challenge in 2022—told Michigan Live, according to Women’s Health. “I have parental controls on everything, but these videos can pop out and be seen by children like my son no matter what.”

A GoFundMe has been started for Deuce’s family.

The description describes him as a “vibrant, kind, loving, beautiful young man, a son, a brother, a grandson, a nephew, a friend, a teammate, a bandmate, a leader, an athlete, who had a passion and incredible talent for football who meant so much to so many, and will be so very deeply missed.”