Missouri mother accused of cyberbullying

LOS ANGELES, May 16 (UPI) -- A Missouri woman allegedly used a fraudulent online account to "cyberbully" a 13-year-old girl until the girl committed suicide, U.S. prosecutors say.

Federal prosecutors alleged this week in a Los Angeles court that 49-year-old Lori Drew fraudulently identified herself as a teenage boy on MySpace and used the online social networking site to harass 13-year-old Megan Meier, the Los Angeles Times said Friday.

The prosecutors allege the resident of Dardenne Prairie, Mo., Drew who has been indicted by a Los Angeles grand jury, used the imaginary persona "to inflict emotional distress" on the teenage girl.

The case was initiated in Los Angeles due to the fact My Space Inc. is based out of Beverly Hills, Calif.

The Times said after Drew's alleged online persona jilted Meier two years ago, the teenager hanged herself in her bedroom. Drew was the mother of a former friend of Meier's, the newspaper said.

"This adult woman allegedly used the Internet to target a teenage girl with horrendous ramifications," U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien said. "This was a tragedy that did not have to happen."

If convicted of related charges, Drew could receive a prison sentence of 20 years.