French police are investigating the loss of life of a preferred streamer, who died throughout a virtually 12-day reside stream after apparently struggling abusive and humiliating remedy.
Raphaël Graven, 46, identified on-line as Jean Pormanove or JP, is likely one of the largest streamers in France on the platform Kick and died on Monday.
The 46-year-old army veteran had constructed a following numbering greater than one million throughout totally different platforms streaming himself enjoying video video games and had typically appeared in excessive challenges.
He had been collaborating since 2023 with a number of different streamers, principally Owen Cenazandotti, generally known as Naruto on-line, and Safine Hamadi, each of whom took half in his closing livestream.
Cenazandotti introduced his loss of life Monday on Instagram. Within the video livestream that appeared to indicate his loss of life, after he stopped transferring, viewers donated cash to ship messages alerting the sleeping streamers to Pormanove’s situation.
The Good prosecutor’s workplace informed CNN that an investigation has been opened into his loss of life and an post-mortem ordered. Thus far, authorities haven’t introduced any prices associated to Pormanove’s loss of life.
In dozens of movies from previous livestreams reviewed by CNN, Pormanove seems to be the goal of jokes, bullying, bodily assaults and degrading stunts.
Movies from their joint livestreams present Pormanove’s fellow streamers competing to see how lengthy they might throttle him, others present him being shot with paintballs or doused with water.
Because of donations from subscribers, the group earned cash from the livestreams. In Pormanove’s closing livestream, a counter on the prime of the display screen recommended the group had earned some 36,000 euros ($42,000) from the days-long stream.
Leaving a mark
Throughout Pormanove’s closing livestream, which appeared to run to almost 300 hours, individuals have been woken up by the revving of a bike of their shared bed room, or a leafblower. At one level, Pormanove seems to be woken up when a bucket of water is thrown over him.
In an interview with CNN affiliate BFMTV, Yassin Sadouni, a lawyer for Cenazandotti, mentioned Pormanove suffered from cardiovascular issues.
In a single video, Pormanove talked of getting to take treatment. In one other, Cenazandotti purports to learn out messages Pormanove despatched to his mom during which he complains of being “held prisoner” by his co-streamers.
The sport “goes too far,” Cenazandotti mentioned his message learn, throughout Pormanove’s final livestream.
“I really feel like I’m being held prisoner by their sh***y idea,” Cenazandotti mentioned Pormanove wrote.
It’s not clear who exactly Pormanove was referring to and in a later clip he tells Cenazandotti, “you realize what I’m like once I’m indignant” in reference to the messages.
In one other clip, his mom berates Pormanove over the telephone for letting the co-streamers shave off elements of his hair.
“Are you happy with your hair? Did you see what he did to you?” she mentioned, “They’re treating you want s***.”
Sadouni, Cenazandotti’s lawyer, informed BFMTV that Pormanove’s mom participated in staged stunts with the streamers.
A typical theme in discussions along with his co-streamers was Pormanove’s want to marry and have youngsters, a hope that usually drew apparently mockery from the streamers.
In a video from 2024, Pormanove was requested how he hoped to be remembered when he died.
“No spouse, no children. However what a pleasant man!” Pormanove mentioned, “Me, what’s on my thoughts now, it’s to go away a mark.”
‘An absolute horror’
Sadouni mentioned Cenazandotti – identified by his streamer deal with Naruto – had nothing to do with Pormanove’s loss of life and mentioned that the incidents focusing on Pormanove have been all staged.
“My shopper is able to be heard and to offer all helpful data,” he informed CNN affiliate BFMTV Tuesday. Cenazandotti has additionally filed a grievance with authorities that he’s being harassed on-line since Pormanove’s loss of life, in keeping with Sadouni.
CNN has reached out to Pormanove’s mom and Hamadi for remark.
Cenazandotti and Hamadi have been briefly detained as a part of a police investigation into the humiliation of susceptible folks in January 2025, in keeping with CNN affiliate BFMTV.
In keeping with the Good prosecutor, they denied committing any crime and haven’t been charged with any crime.
“The loss of life of Jean Pormanove and the violence he endured are an absolute horror,” French Secretary of State for Synthetic Intelligence and Digital Affairs Clara Chappaz mentioned in a put up on X Tuesday.
“Jean Pormanove was humiliated and mistreated for months reside on the Kick platform,” she added.
Kick, the streaming platform the streamers used, mentioned that every one these concerned within the broadcast had been banned “pending the continuing investigation,” which the positioning will cooperate with, per a press release to CNN Wednesday.
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