OHIO DAD ALLEGEDLY POSED AS DAUGHTER ON TIKTOK, SHOT MAN
An Ohio father allegedly posed as his 11-year-old daughter on TikTok to lure a man to his home, then shot him.
Malik Chandler, 31, allegedly shot Diego Montoya Gonzalez, 20, on July 16, 2026, on Parlin Drive in Grove City, Ohio, the New York Post reported.
Prosecutors said the girl’s mother found a video on her daughter’s phone that allegedly showed Montoya Gonzalez sexually assaulting the girl at the family’s home.
Chandler then allegedly posed as his daughter on TikTok and persuaded Montoya Gonzalez to come back to the house the next day. Yahoo News, carrying WSYX/ABC 6 reporting, said Chandler used the messages to set up a meeting under false pretenses.
Investigators said Chandler told them what he planned. “I intended to just beat up Montoya Gonzalez, hold him there and then call police,” he said.
Chandler also said the meeting did not go that way. “I thought I saw the alleged sicko reach for a gun in his pocket,” he said, according to the Post’s account of his statement.
He then grabbed a gun from a counter and fired, Chandler said. Police found Montoya Gonzalez sitting in a chair with two gunshot wounds.
Charges and court dates
Chandler was charged with felonious assault. Yahoo News reported he also faced a weapons-under-disability charge.
That count is tied to a felony burglary conviction Chandler had as a minor, Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office communications director Nya Hairston said.
Chandler pleaded not guilty at his arraignment. His mother said the family paid toward his bond.
Montoya Gonzalez was indicted separately. LADbible reported that a grand jury indicted him on rape, pandering sexually oriented material and obstruction of official business charges.
He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on August 3, 2026. LADbible reported that he has denied the claim against him.
The International Business Times UK reported that the two cases are proceeding separately and that both remained active. Montoya Gonzalez faces trial, and Chandler’s assault case continues on its own track. The outlet said the case drew national attention to how Ohio’s justice system treats vigilante violence against alleged child predators.
The Post reported that a judge set Montoya Gonzalez’s bond at $20,000 recognizance or $50,000 cash. If he is released, he must have no contact with the girl or her family, and his internet use is limited to work purposes.
