YouTube vlogger shot boyfriend dead in book stunt then had his baby

Monalisa Perez and Pedro Ruiz were a young couple who shared their lives online in the hopes of gaining a large following – but tragedy struck during one ill-fated YouTube stunt

Some people will go to any lengths to grab a slice of fame, but this shocking tale ranks among the most disturbing in recent memory.

Vloggers Monalisa Perez and Pedro Ruiz made it their mission to film every moment of their life. The young pair, both in their early twenties, documented their romance online in a bid to build a devoted fanbase.

Their sole ambition was to expand their YouTube viewership and pursue internet stardom.

Whether they were enjoying family trips with their three-year-old daughter, Aaliyah, or challenging each other to attempt ever more dangerous stunts, everything was captured on camera.

Even revealing the gender of their second child – a baby boy – was broadcast to their followers.

In June 2017, they posted a clip entitled ‘Doing scary stunts at the fair. Part 1’, reports the Mirror.

The recording captured the pair at a local funfair, where Pedro was even spotted by admirers. Monalisa quipped to the camera “imagine when we get 300,000 subscribers.”

Pedro responded “I’ll be throwing parties.”

The duo lived in Halstad, a tiny Minnesota town, and had been an item for five years. Pedro grafted as a railway engineer, whilst Monalisa remained at home looking after their little girl.

Their YouTube channel description invited viewers into “the real life of a young couple who happen to be teen parents,” pledging genuine content, ups and downs and loads of entertainment.

After sharing their fairground footage, Monalisa then posted on Twitter: “Me and Pedro are probably going to shoot one of the most dangerous stunts ever. HIS idea not MINE.”

Within 30 minutes, the pair began positioning two cameras in their back garden.

Pedro had shared the scheme with his aunt, who was appalled and pleaded with him to abandon it. When she questioned why he would gamble with his life, he responded matter-of-factly, “because we want the viewers. We want to be famous.”

That evening, one camera was positioned on a ladder, the other on a vehicle. Roughly 30 people assembled nearby, including their young daughter.

Pedro stood clutching a 1.5-inch-thick hardback encyclopaedia against his chest. Monalisa, seven months pregnant, positioned herself just a foot away, grasping a .50 calibre Desert Eagle handgun.

Pedro was convinced the book would halt the bullet as he had tested a similar one previously. But when Monalisa squeezed the trigger, the bullet ripped straight through the pages and into Pedro’s chest, causing him to collapse immediately.

An air ambulance quickly touched down nearby, but despite attempts to save him, Pedro died at the scene.

Monalisa was arrested and initially charged with reckless discharge of a firearm – but later faced a second-degree manslaughter charge.

Whilst awaiting trial, Monalisa gave birth to a son. In December 2017, she admitted guilt to second-degree manslaughter, with prosecutors highlighting “culpable negligence” in a death that was completely preventable.

Her legal team contended that Pedro had masterminded the stunt and continuously assured her there was no danger.

Monalisa received a six-month prison sentence to be served intermittently across three years, allowing her to look after her children.

She was also banned from possessing firearms, given supervised probation for 10 years, and forbidden from making money from the footage or the incident.

Speaking to WDAY-TV, Pedro’s aunt Claudia Ruiz said: “I wish they wouldn’t have done it. I wish he would’ve just done another prank. They were in love. It was just a prank gone wrong. It shouldn’t have happened like this. It shouldn’t have happened at all.”