YouTubers Gavin Free and Meg Turney Survived Armed Intruder

Gavin Free and Meg Turney had to hide in their closet from an armed intruder in their home in late January. A fan of Turney’s who resented Free, Christopher Eric Giles broke into the couple’s home in Austin, Texas, and fired at least one shot in the house before being shot dead by police.

Gavin and Meg heard breaking glass and a gunshot around 3:40 am on January 26. They hid in a closet and dialed 911, and apparently, Giles left when he was unable to find them.

Police discovered Giles pulling out of their driveway in his car and ordered him to stop. They heard a single gunshot and returned fire. Giles was discovered dead in the car with a .45 caliber handgun by his hand.

According to the American-Statesman, Giles fired and the policeman who returned fire, Officer Matthew Jackson, shot Giles, killing him. According to police, Giles lived alone and spent his time playing video games and watching YouTube content focused on video games.

This is likely how he developed his fondness for Meg Turney, whose YouTube channel focused on video games has over 330,000 subscribers. He drove over 700 miles from Albuquerque to where Free and Turney live in Austin, Texas.

Police also said notes in Giles’ phone identified the couple by name and included the sentence “I want Gavin Free to die alone, with no children.” Gavin Free is the co-creator of The Slo Mo Guys, a channel with over 10 million subscribers. He was also the creative director of RoosterTeeth in late 2015.

Neither Free or Turney has commented publicly on the story thus far.

Prominent YouTubers have increasingly become the targets of demented fans. Logan Paul recently called police after he discovered an intruder sitting on his couch charging his phone. Of course, the most prominent and tragic of these stories is the shooting of Christina Grimmie while she was signing autographs after a concert in Orlando.

Our thoughts go out to Gavin and Meg and we hope they’re doing well.

Do you think online fandom goes too far? Are YouTubers giving up their privacy by sharing so much with their fans? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter at @WhatsTrending.