True Crime: Christina Grimmie | Murder of a Rising Star | Inside the Location Where it Happened

If you would like to support me on Patreon please visit   / scottontape  
Follow my Instagram   / scottontape  
If you would like to help support my travels and films you can PayPal me at https://www.paypal.me/scottontape99
Join my Facebook group Scottontape

#truecrime #christinagrimmie

Track: Wonders — INTROVERT [Audio Library Release]
Music provided by Audio Library Plus
Watch:    • Wonders — INTROVERT | Free Background...  
Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/wonderss

Footage of Christina singing from her YouTube channel

Christina Victoria Grimmie (March 12, 1994 – June 10, 2016) was an American singer and YouTuber. In 2009, she began posting covers of popular songs onto YouTube. After releasing her debut EP, Find Me (2011), her YouTube channel reached one million subscribers. After she reached two million subscribers, she released her debut studio album, With Love (2013).

Grimmie then became a contestant on season six of The Voice, finishing in third place. Adam Levine, her coach on the show, announced in the finale that, regardless of the results, he would sign her to his label 222 Records. Lil Wayne also offered to sign her to his label, Young Money Entertainment. She was signed with Island Records for a short time before being dropped.

Grimmie released her second EP, Side A, in 2016. That same year, she took on an acting role, making her first and only motion picture appearance in The Matchbreaker. On June 10, 2016, Grimmie was fatally shot while signing autographs following a concert performance at The Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida.

Side B, a follow up to Side A, was made available on Spotify and iTunes in 2017, and in June 2017, Grimmie's second and final album, All Is Vanity, was released posthumously. In 2019, her YouTube channel reached four million subscribers, although it dropped below four million in 2020.

On June 10, 2016, Grimmie performed with Before You Exit at The Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida. Earlier that day, she posted a shout-out on social media asking people to attend the concert. After her performance ended at 10:00 p.m. local time, Grimmie signed autographs inside the venue. At 10:24 p.m., Grimmie was shot by 27-year-old Kevin James Loibl after initially opening her arms to give him a hug. As witnesses fled the scene, Loibl was tackled by Grimmie's brother, and the men scuffled. Loibl broke free, backed against a wall, and shot himself dead.[a] Grimmie was on the floor and bleeding from the head; after CPR was performed on her, 911 was called and she was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center in critical condition with four gunshot wounds;[b] she was pronounced dead just before 11:00 p.m. local time. An autopsy revealed that Grimmie was shot once in the head and twice in the chest. Her death was declared a homicide.

The Orlando Police Department said Loibl had traveled by taxi to Orlando from his home in St. Petersburg, Florida, bringing two handguns, two extra magazines full of ammunition, and a large hunting knife.[c] Orlando Police Chief John Mina stated that "The suspect traveled to Orlando apparently to commit this crime and then had plans to travel back to where he came from." According to Orlando police, the bags of the attendees would normally have been checked, but there were no metal detectors at the venue, nor were the attendees frisked.

One witness complained that the security was concerned about food and beverages being brought into the theater, but did not catch Loibl's guns. Witnesses described Loibl as "nervous" and "kinda creepy".

Loibl had purchased the guns legally. He did not have an arrest record in his home county Pinellas, but had had previous run-ins with the police. He did not appear to know Grimmie personally; nor did Grimmie know of him. He also had no diagnosis of any mental illnesses, but had a history of violence.

Police did not offer a motive, but said that Loibl had shown an "unhealthy and unrealistic infatuation" with the singer and tried to make himself more physically attractive for her through weight loss, hair plugs, and eye surgery. The Orlando Sentinel described his motive as "If I can't have you, then nobody else can — and I'm going to possess you by taking your life." Although Loibl lived "like a hermit", his family said that they were not aware of his plans to travel to Orlando nor that he possessed any guns. They also stated that they had never heard of Grimmie, heard Loibl talk about her, or watched The Voice. However, his "only friend in the world" claimed to have known about Loibl's obsession, though not its extent; Loibl's co-workers stated the same. They also said Loibl would be "angry and defensive" when questioned about his obsession and before the shooting had stated he was "tired and ready to ascend".

Grimmie was buried at Berlin Cemetery, in a private ceremony on June 16. The following day, thousands of friends and fans attended a public memorial held in Medford, New Jersey.