New Jersey Teen Allegedly Murdered Neighbor to Become TikTok Famous

A New Jersey man who allegedly killed his neighbor during a scuffle reportedly did so to gain TikTok fame, NJ.com reports.

18-year-old Zachary Latham stabbed 51-year-old, William Durham, Sr., to death in May as the result of an ongoing feud between Latham and Durham's family, according to the Durham family's lawyers. They believe that Latham lured the familt into the house after multiple altercations that he filmed "for TikTok." In fact, one of them went viral on the social media platform, receiving more than 3 million views.

In one April video, Latham was confronted by Durham's wife, Cathrine—who he repeatedly called "Karen"—about his driving. In another video, Durham's 21-year-old son, William, tried to open Latham's car door while he drove, at which point Latham yelled "I got a knife, dude." Lawyers also claim that there is a third now-deleted video of Latham holding a gun saying "this is how you handle neighbors."

The Durham family says these exchanges began when Latham swerved toward their 17-year-old son while he was on his bike. Catherine then confronted Latham leading to the viral altercation. After multiple encounters, Mr. Durham decided to confront Latham, and that's when Lathan tased and stabbed Durham multiple times.

Latham insists he was acting self-defense. But, in their letter to the prosecution, the family's lawyers say that Latham’s wife, Sarah, recorded the murder because "it was her and Latham’s intent to post these videos to TikTok and become 'TikTok famous.'" Prosecutors now want to upgrade Latham's charges from aggravated manslaughter and assault to first-degree murder. They also requested that the criminal trespass and assault charges against Durham's family be dropped.