A Taiwanese influencer who faked his abduction on social media has been sent to jail by Cambodian authorities for two years.
Chen Neng-chuan, 31, who creates videos about “paranormal activities” on social media, was arrested with his friend, Lu Tsu-hsien after the duo staged a forced abduction and escape on his Instagram live feed.
The influencer told his followers he was going to explore the “dark corner” in Cambodia, famous for notorious gangs kidnapping foreigners.
On live stream, the influencer who goes by the name GoodNight Chicken appeared to have been beaten up.
Later, Chen’s wife also posted on social media that her husband had gone missing.
He subsequently resurfaced in a video, looking injured with part of his head shaved, where he claimed to have been kidnapped and narrated a story of his dramatic escape.
However, his story raised suspicion from online watchers.
Another influencer Liu Yu pointed out that Chen’s location didn’t match his claims.
Using the footage Chen had posted, Liu said he appeared to have circled an area instead of running away as he claimed.
He also raised doubts about why his captors would take thousands of US dollars he alleged they did, yet permitted him to retain his live streaming equipment.
Taiwanese police said Chen’s family did not file a police report, while the ministry of foreign affairs said it did not receive any request for help, according to The Straits Times.
Soon after the video caught the attention, the duo was arrested from their hotel rooms.
#HistorieStreamerskie
— Linde (@00Linde) February 14, 2024
Tajwański streamer został aresztowany w Kambodży po sfingowaniu własnego porwania podczas transmisji na żywo.
Chen Neng-chuan twierdził, że uciekał przed porwaniem, prezentując sfabrykowane podarte ubranie i obrażenia. Został zatrzymany przez kambodżańską… pic.twitter.com/F8rn8toWZv
The Cambodian police presented them to the media in a briefing along with the props they used to film the sequence.
On Friday, the provincial court found them guilty on charges of “incitement to cause chaos to social security”.
The provincial government said the men produced videos with “fake content that affects the honour, order, and security” of the province.
They were both handed two-year sentences and ordered to pay a combined fine of around $2,000 (£1,590).
