Influencer fabricates death in online hoax

Police have accused a popular influencer with 1.5 million followers of fabricating her own suicide and extortion story, sparking a nationwide rumor before authorities confirmed she was alive. She now faces charges for disrupting public order.

The announcement came in a statement released early Tuesday by the Jinjiang branch of the Chengdu Public Security Bureau, which revealed that officers had confirmed via phone and video calls on Sunday that Sun, the influencer was alive.

At 4:23 am on Sunday, a video posted to the Douyin account "Shi xiao nian oh" claimed that the 18-year-old female blogger, surnamed Sun, had committed suicide at 11 pm on Saturday in Chengdu, Sichuan province. It said her account had been handed over to relatives.

The account further claimed in the comments section that Sun's alleged suicide note and chat records showed someone had attempted to extort 1.3 million yuan ($181,000) from her, ultimately "driving her to death".

To address public concerns and ensure her safety, officers met Sun in person on Monday and conducted an investigation, the statement said.

The investigation found that Sun had fabricated the suicide story out of impulse and deliberately spread the information online. She had also falsely identified herself as one of her relatives to post deceptive messages in the comment section.

Police have opened a case against Sun on suspicion of fabricating information to disrupt public order, according to the statement.