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Inset: Chrystofer Whyte taking a selfie video on the same beach in Long Branch, N.J., where he was fatally shot (Chrystofer A. Whyte/TikTok). Background: The shooting scene where Chrystofer Whyte was gunned down in Long Branch, N.J., on June 12, 2025 (WABC/YouTube).
In New Jersey, two individuals are being charged for allegedly assaulting and shooting a popular TikTok star on a beach where he had been filming and uploading videos mere hours before.
Chrystofer Whyte, 18, appears in his final TikTok post capturing a selfie video on a beach in Long Branch on June 12, prior to being shot and killed at the same location later that evening, shortly before 9 p.m., as the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office reports.
Whyte was in a beach area between the shoreline and the boardwalk of Pier Village when suspects Dwayne Exilus, 18, of Woodbridge, and a minor who is not being identified due to his age allegedly opened fire on him. An outdoor music concert had just wrapped up at Pier Village, leading to scores of people getting caught in the crossfire.
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Cellphone video captured by locals shows the mayhem unfold.
@hi.imchrys #fyp #longbranch ♬ Rock That Body Lumarii Remix – lumariimusic
The juvenile suspect allegedly shot Whyte multiple times, while Exilus is said to have missed. It’s unclear what the motive was exactly, with friends pointing to alleged feuds with local kids who have been caught during TikTok Live videos “antagonizing” Whyte and “calling him names” in the comments, according to Patch. Police and prosecutors have not provided any details on what prompted Exilus and the underage boy to shoot Whyte, nor have they revealed what happened before the bullets started flying.
“I think this whole situation was about egos,” said Whyte’s pal, Jaiden Roche, 19, who started a GoFundMe for Whyte’s family and spoke to Patch, as well as police, about the alleged TikTok beef last month.
“They saw his TikTok post and they ended up coming to the beach,” Roche said, noting how he was there and allegedly witnessed everything. “They came to the beach knowing they would start problems,” Roche told Patch. “He had told these kids, let’s fight. I guess these kids had something more than a fight in mind.”
Whyte was found fatally shot on the boardwalk in Long Branch on the night he died. The teen was well-known locally for football and wrestling at Woodbridge High School, according to Patch and other media outlets. He had more than 90,000 followers on TikTok at the time of his death.
“It was just to have a good day at the beach with his friends,” Roche said. “He was doing TikTok full time and he was making a good living with it, too.”
Prosecutors have charged Exilus and the underage suspect with multiple crimes in connection to Whyte’s death, with the juvenile getting hit with murder and conspiracy to commit unlawful possession of a weapon charges. Exilus is facing conspiracy to commit unlawful possession of a weapon charges as well, in addition to unlawful possession of a weapon and hindering. The charges were announced Monday by Monmouth County.
