Tragic Story of Randy Steer and His Online Friend

One of my friends online lost contact with YouTuber Randy Steer following a video he posted in 2016. Less than a year later, tragedy struck when Steer carried out a workplace shooting in Pennsylvania, claiming the lives of three co-workers before taking his own life.

“It was just terrifying,” Sammy shared. “I don’t want to say it felt like a betrayal, but I honestly couldn’t fathom that someone I thought I knew could create something so intense and share it online. I ended up blocking him after he put out a video about me.”

The incident has been featured in Investigation Discovery’s true crime series, “Deadly Influence: The Social Media Murders.” An episode titled “Enter the Ghost World” delves into Steer’s online behavior and his growing obsession leading up to the shooting.

Back in April 2016, Steer released a video titled “A Promise Kept,” which some of their mutual acquaintances described as containing graphic threats directed at Sammy. He detailed attempts he made on her life, which left her puzzled about what could possibly incite such rage.

The video featured an animated poster for “Teenage Girl Missing” that included a sketch possibly resembling Sammy. Near the video’s conclusion, Steer, depicted as Ember McClain from “Danny Phantom,” is shown holding what looks like Sammy’s severed head.

“You’re going to pay for what you’ve done to me,” Steer allegedly says in the video. “Mark my words… you are not safe…. You were once a nice girl in my eyes. But that didn’t last long. Like your short existence.”

This convinced Sammy to sever ties with Steer completely. “He started posting some cryptic stuff on Twitter, and we were never quite certain what to make of it,” she recalled. “After the video was released, I blocked him for good and cut off all contact.”

Steer had started his YouTube channel, PioneersProductions, around 2008, when he was about 15 years old. Initially, his content consisted of playful sketches and humorous short films. Sammy found his channel when she was about 12 and quickly became a fan. Their communication began when Steer was about 21.

“I think what drew me to his channel was that his videos felt like home videos,” Sammy mentioned. “Growing up with my brothers, they also liked his content, which made him relatable to me as both a creator and a person.”

“Our conversations mostly revolved around his YouTube content,” she added. “But we discovered that we shared several interests, particularly in music. I think I saw him like a big brother. At the beginning, he was very friendly.”

As Steer’s audience expanded, so did his content’s personal nature, including behind-the-scenes glimpses into his life. In this documentary, he was depicted as socially awkward and introverted off-camera.

“When it comes to platforms like YouTube, you have many chances to get things right,” Sammy pointed out. “If something doesn’t pan out, you can always start over. That might be something he enjoyed—having the ability to perfect his work—which let him express himself in ways he struggled with in real life.”

Over time, as his filming skills enhanced, Steer’s videos took a darker turn. The humorous sketches that used to dominate his channel were replaced by morose short films and bleak monologues.

Steer had once produced a series of comedic sketches involving frogs and whales. His later work ended up showcasing characters meeting violent ends, a stark contrast to his previous content. “I found it very different from his early stuff,” Sammy remarked. “He seemed to change as a person too—becoming more distant and less active on social media.”

Sammy recalled times when Steer shared thoughts of self-harm, insisting he wouldn’t actually follow through, but there was an unsettling nature to those conversations. “Whenever we brought it up, he changed the subject or reassured us he wouldn’t act on those ideas.”

In the months leading up to the shooting, Sammy saw a noticeable shift in Steer’s online activities. His posts became erratic, often deleting tweets soon after posting, filled with existential musings about his purpose.

By around 2013, he developed an obsession with a character named McClane from a Nickelodeon show, channeling it into an animated series called Ember’s Ghost Squad. He even filled diaries with thoughts about joining that character in the afterlife.

Sammy and his other friends noted that this fixation seemed to take over Steer’s online persona. “Honestly, I can’t really explain why he became so captivated by that character,” she admitted. “Maybe it was just a fondness for the character’s appearance or backstory, but it’s a mystery to me.”

As for his job at Weiss Markets, he often shared that he didn’t envision a long-term career there. While he didn’t harbor any resentment, Sammy never thought he would resort to violence in that environment.

On June 8, 2017, Steer went to work armed with two shotguns and blocked the exit, firing 59 rounds before taking his own life. He tragically took the lives of three co-workers during his rampage. There wasn’t any indication that those close to him could have predicted the events that unfolded, but Sammy still grapples with feelings of guilt.

“It was completely shocking,” she said. “I wish I had spoken up more about the signs I noticed. There were moments when he posted something unsettling, only to take it down quickly. When I brought it up, he would divert the conversation. Looking back now, I see the decline that was happening.”

Now, Sammy hopes to raise awareness about mental health and urges others to pay attention to behavioral changes. “I think often people are hesitant to speak up and might be unsure where to go for help. We really need to be more aware of our surroundings.”