A Chinese social media star’s viral videos attracted the wrong sort of attention after it was revealed that his acts of mass generosity had been faked.
The man, known as Brother Jie on Chinese social media site Kuai Shou, sparked public outrage after videos of himself giving out free money in China’s poor Sichuan province were exposed as fakes when another user uploaded footage showing him taking the money back straight away.
Brother Jie apologised to his 660,000 followers online, admitting that he had been lying to increase his fans and receive virtual gifts from them – gifts he could turn into hard cash.
He later live-streamed himself in hospital begging his fans for forgiveness after supposedly attempting to take his life by drinking a bottle of detergent. His site has now been shut down and police are investigating.
The shamed star claimed that if your live streaming videos attract more than 500 fans, you can earn at least 4,000 or 5,000 Yuan – between £470-590 – a day.
Like this? You might also be interested in:
Woman Bought A House By Selling iPhones Her 20 Boyfriends Gave Her
This Dad’s Been Trolling His Daughter By Recreating Her Selfies, And It’s Dividing The Internet
This Homewrecker Penguin Fight Is The Most Brutal Thing On The Internet Right Now
**Follow Tara on Twitter **@taralepore
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.