NEED TO KNOW

• Florida woman accused of using Roblox to instruct a 10-year-old to harm an infant had attempted murder charges dropped in January plea deal
• Roblox conducted its own investigation and disputed law enforcement claims that violent instructions were exchanged on the platform
• The 2-month-old suffered a skull fracture but survived after being dropped on a tile floor by the child

PENSACOLA, FL (TDR) — A Roblox child safety case that once drew national outrage ended quietly in January when prosecutors dropped attempted murder charges against Tara Sykes, the Pensacola woman accused of using the online gaming platform to instruct a 10-year-old girl to kill a 2-month-old infant. Sykes pleaded no contest to a single count of child neglect without great bodily harm and was sentenced to 11 months and 29 days in county jail — with credit for 462 days already served.

The deal meant Sykes, 37, had already completed her sentence the moment the plea was entered. Charges of principal to attempted first-degree premeditated murder, two counts of solicitation to commit first-degree murder and one count of child cruelty were all eliminated. First Judicial Circuit Judge Amy P. Brodersen approved the agreement on Jan. 22.

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How The Roblox Murder Case Unraveled

The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office first got involved in October 2024 after the Gulf Coast Kids House, a child advocacy center, reported that a 2-month-old had suffered a skull fracture after being dropped on a kitchen floor by a 10-year-old girl. During their investigation, deputies said they discovered the child had been communicating with Sykes through Roblox between Sept. 26 and Oct. 17, 2024.

According to arrest reports, Sykes instructed the girl on multiple methods to harm the infant, including drowning and scalding with hot water. Deputies also alleged she directed the child to kill the adults in the household by cutting their throats and to set fire to the home by dousing bedsheets with aerosol spray.

“I have been in Law Enforcement for over 40 years and have never seen anything quite like this. I am truly disturbed by the circumstances and the thought that anyone could think like this, let alone instruct these acts to be carried out.” — Sheriff Chip Simmons

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The 10-year-old told forensic interviewers she was terrified of Sykes and believed she would be harmed or killed herself if she did not comply.

Roblox Disputes Sheriff’s Account

A critical wrinkle in the case emerged when Roblox conducted its own internal investigation and publicly challenged the sheriff’s narrative. The company confirmed the two users communicated on the platform but stated the conversations were “in policy” and did not contain the violent instructions described by law enforcement. Roblox said it retains chat logs for two years and shared its findings with investigators.

The sheriff’s office, meanwhile, noted that conversations had been deleted by the time investigators received the case and that their findings were based on statements from multiple witnesses, including the child’s forensic interview and physical evidence found in the home.

This contradiction between platform records and law enforcement allegations likely played a central role in the prosecution’s decision to accept a dramatically reduced plea.

Pattern Of Child Neglect Allegations

The Roblox case was not Sykes’ first encounter with child welfare authorities. In May 2024, she and her husband James Sykes were arrested on child neglect charges after investigators discovered they had allowed a 20-year-old man to live in their home despite knowing he had impregnated their 14-year-old daughter. The teen was reportedly 31 weeks pregnant and suffering from malnutrition. Authorities later added extortion charges after the couple allegedly demanded $10,000 from the young man’s grandmother in exchange for silence.

Sykes remains held without bond on the separate neglect and extortion charges and is scheduled to return to court on April 8.

Broader Questions About Gaming Platform Accountability

The case arrives amid intensifying scrutiny of children’s online safety on gaming platforms. Roblox reports over 100 million daily active users, with roughly 40% under age 13. In 2024 and 2025, the company rolled out more than 145 safety updates including restrictions on direct messaging for users under 13 and facial age estimation requirements.

Yet recent research from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children found that online enticement reports surged from roughly 293,000 to over 518,000 in the first half of 2025 alone. Multiple states including Louisiana and Texas have filed lawsuits against Roblox alleging insufficient child protections, while Florida’s Attorney General has issued criminal subpoenas targeting the platform’s moderation practices.

When a platform’s internal records contradict law enforcement findings and prosecutors reduce attempted murder to neglect, does the system protect children — or does it protect the institutions meant to be watching them?

Sources

This report was compiled using information from WEAR-TV, Law & Crime, NBC News, HuffPost, Complex, official statements by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Roblox Corporation’s safety updates, reporting by ABC 3340, and data from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the New York State Senate.

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