He youtuber United States Connor Murphy died to the 32 years after drown in a lake in Thailand. This was confirmed by the portal TMZwhile the circumstances of the tragic death of the young man, who had accumulated 2.36 million subscribers on YouTube.
Murphy rose to fame in 2010, initially as a fitness influencer who shared sports training and bodybuilding tips and daily vlogs of his physical change after improving his habits.
However, in recent years its content revolved around «looksmaxxing«, a trend about physical appearance that obsesses some young people and worries in the digital world. It ranges from aesthetic routines and the «mewing» (mandibular exercises), to extreme and dangerous practices for health.
According to the Thai media Thai Rath the influencer acted «erratically» early Tuesday morning when returning by taxi to a luxury residential development in Bang Phli on the eastern outskirts of Bangkok, where he had been living for the past two months.
Neighbors stated that Connor tried to get into another car, but the driver refused due to his behavior and that sparked a shouting argument.
Locals called the police and reported a «sudden and frantic nervous breakdown.» When law enforcement arrived, a police chase broke out after the YouTuber fled the scene and jumped into a nearby lake almost three meters deep.
They investigate the tragic drowning of Connor Murphy
Police Captain Weeraphong Rupsuay told the media that neighbors heard the YouTuber muttering prayers and yelling at his bride. «His apparent religious behavior could be due to his personal beliefs, but he suddenly became frantic without warning, despite never having shown similar behavior before«, indicated Rupsuay.
«When we arrived he became very nervous with the agents and He refused to let anyone approach him. «Suddenly he jumped into the lake and started swimming, trying to stay afloat until he couldn’t help but sink,» said police lieutenant colonel Santirat Ngernman.
It took a team of divers from the Poh Teck Tung Foundation to recover the influencer’s body. After 30 minutes of searching, they managed to locate him and brought him to shore. They tried to perform resuscitation tasks, but there was no response.
Connor’s girlfriend, who preferred to remain anonymous, stated that the young man had no problems or unusual behavior and assured that she had never seen him use drugs.
What they found at Connor Murphy’s house
Police confirmed that Murphy had been in the country on a digital nomad visa and remained at the same address during the two months he was in the Thai capital.
The investigation into the tragic event included a search of the home where he lived. Authorities said they found the house in deplorable condition, with paint smeared on the walls and furniture, as well as huge piles of garbage.
They also discovered two unused syringes in his vehicle, as well as unidentified white pills. The investigation remains active and an autopsy was ordered to determine the cause of death.
Connor Murphy’s disturbing latest video
The last video he published on his YouTube channel just six days ago was titled «RIP Elon Muscular«, in which he claimed to be «absorbing the spirit of Elon» and thanking him for his «sacrifice.»
In the caption he wrote: «Pending obituary. This is a satirical representation. This dramatization does not reflect real events. «Nothing that appears in this video should be replicated and everything represented complies with current laws and regulations.»
On TikTok, he posted another video showing him shooting a bow and arrow at a large body of water and claimed he was «hunting dragons.» In the comments section, many of his followers had expressed their concern and asked him if he was okay.
What is looksmaxxing, a worrying trend
The phenomenon grew so much on social networks that prestigious media such as the BBC have dedicated entire reports to the looksmaxxing trend.
Some young people will even declare themselves «references» of looksmaxxing and are willing to do everything possible to achieve what they consider «a perfect face and body.»
From gym workouts and skin care, known as softmaxxing, to the consumption of growth hormones and unregulated peptides.
At the most radical extreme—known as hardmaxxing— some even go so far as to beat the bones in their faces or undergo jaw surgeries to «climb» in the hierarchy of alleged male beauty.
The term originally emerged in online forums of young men who described themselves as «involuntarily celibate» or incels in English, where misogynistic rhetoric often circulates that blames women for «men’s lack of sexual relations.»
«One thing is someone who wants to improve their physical appearance to feel better about themselves, and quite another is those who tell young men that they are useless and present themselves as the solution,» journalist Matt Shea, who made several documentaries on the subject, told the BBC.
«They sell courses on how to increase ‘sexual market value,’ and the higher it is, the more likely you are to have sex with a woman. According to that reasoning, if after all that effort a woman isn’t attracted to you, it means you haven’t worked hard enough on yourself or it’s their fault. And that’s when it gets dangerous,» Shea said.
