The madness of fame and the drive to gain more followers can lead some to commit crazy acts, some of which can be deadly. A woman from Minnesota is facing trial for killing her boyfriend by shooting him in order to film a video for YouTube to achieve high viewership.

The story began in 2017 when MonaLisa Perez, a 19-year-old pregnant in her seventh month, attempted to film a dangerous video with her boyfriend Pedro Ruiz, who was 22 years old, to post on their YouTube account. Their plan was for Pedro to hold a book up to his chest while MonaLisa would shoot him, believing that the book would stop the bullet. Despite her initial reluctance, Pedro convinced her that shooting him was completely safe because he had done it before with other books without the bullet penetrating.

The two proceeded with their plan, and a day before filming, MonaLisa posted on Twitter informing her followers that she and Pedro would be filming a dangerous stunt and that the idea was not hers. Pedro set up two cameras to record everything in hopes that the video would go viral. When the time came, MonaLisa shot Pedro from a distance of about a foot while he was holding the book against his chest. Contrary to their expectations, the bullet did not stop and penetrated the book, killing Pedro.

After Pedro’s death, MonaLisa broke down and called emergency services, crying and explaining what had happened. The police arrested MonaLisa and seized the video as evidence, which had not been released. She was charged with second-degree murder, which carries a potential penalty of up to ten years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

MonaLisa’s aunt defended her, stating that MonaLisa and Pedro were in love, had a child together, and were expecting another. She described the incident as a tragic mistake that should never have happened, adding that they were only trying to achieve high viewership on YouTube and did not realize how dangerous their idea was.