Influencer Dad Fakes Death to Teach Family a Lesson
He maintains that the death stunt has brought his family closer than ever
If there is one thing we have learned in the six years since TikTok debuted, it is that you can't believe everything you see or hear about on the video-sharing social media website. From bogus health and fitness claims to dangerous stunts, TikTok is responsible for many viral trends, and not all of them are even legit. And, according to a new report, some people are even faking their deaths with the help of TikTok.
David Baerten, 45, also known as Ragnar le Fou on TikTok, is a Belgian influencer, husband, and father. He recently faked his own death, fooling even his family, before showing up to his funeral in a helicopter.
According to Baerten, he pulled the stunt to teach his family a lesson about staying in touch. While his wife and children were in on the stunt, collaborating with him to pull it off, other family members truly believed he was dead.
"Rest in peace Daddy. I will never stop thinking about you," one of his daughters wrote on the app. "Why is life so unfair? Why you? You were going to be a grandfather, and you still had your whole life ahead of you. I love you! We love you! We will never forget you."
Over the weekend his loved ones congregated at his "funeral" where he showed up in a helicopter along with a film crew. "Cheers to you all, welcome to my funeral," he said on a video.
While some weeping relatives hugged him and were happy he was alive, others complained about the sick "joke" and called the stunt "pitiful."
"What I see in my family often hurts me," the TikToker with almost 78,000 followers said about why he pulled the stunt. "I never get invited to anything. Nobody sees me. We all grew apart. I felt unappreciated. That's why I wanted to give them a life lesson, and show them that you shouldn't wait until someone is dead to meet up with them."
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The full funeral video has yet to be released. And, according to Baerten, while "only half of my family came to the funeral" the stunt attracted the attention of other relatives who have now been in touch. "That proves who really cares about me," he said "Those who didn't come, did contact me to meet up. So in a way I did win."
