Two social media influencers have been found guilty of mistreating a French online personality who tragically passed away during an extreme challenge livestream. The incident occurred in a village near Nice last August when Raphael Graven, also known as Jean Pormanove, was discovered unconscious on a bed by his co-streamers, prompting the broadcast’s interruption. The livestream on the Kick platform had been active for over 298 hours before the distressing discovery.
As a result of the investigation into Graven’s death, Safine Hamadi and Owen Cenazandotti have been convicted of aggravated violence for subjecting him to consistent humiliation and abuse in his content. The court in Nice has imposed suspended prison sentences on the pair, who contended that Graven had consented to the mistreatment.
Graven, who had a substantial social media following of over 500,000, reportedly endured severe mistreatment during the livestream, including sleep deprivation, physical violence, and the consumption of harmful substances for ten days. His controversial live actions, including being restrained and force-fed, being physically attacked, and enduring object throwing, sparked outrage among viewers.
Hamadi received an 18-month suspended prison term, and Cenazandotti was handed a two-year suspended sentence, along with fines of €5,000 and €15,000 respectively. Additionally, they are prohibited from posting online for six months. Despite not facing charges related to Graven’s death, the prosecution attributed his passing to underlying health issues rather than direct maltreatment.
The investigation revealed that Graven and his co-streamers may have staged the events of mistreatment for financial gain, with viewers potentially incentivizing the abuse through payments. The prosecutor emphasized the serious nature of deliberate violence against vulnerable individuals and the dissemination of harmful content.
Kick, the streaming platform involved in the incident, remains under scrutiny by French authorities, although it asserts that the legal consequences pertain solely to the individual content creators. The Mirror has reached out to Kick for further comments on the matter.