A popular Latin American YouTuber with a history of faking his death is in recovery, after it was reported earlier this week that he fell from a third-storey balcony in Argentina while filming a video.
Yao Cabrera, often compared to controversial content creators like the Paul brothers in the US, was in “grave condition” earlier this week after falling from his home in the town of Villa Carlos Paz.
“He fell from the third floor while filming a video. It’s grave,” Christian Manzanelli, one of his former representatives, who is currently promoting a boxing match featuring the YouTuber, told the Argentine newspaper La Nación.
“As is public knowledge, Yao Cabrera’s condition is serious and he is hospitalized at the moment, waiting for an improvement. We will keep you informed of everything,” read a statement on his Instagram, which tagged Kevin Macri, a close friend and fellow Uruguayan videomaker.
Mr Cabrera, 26, originally from Uruguay, is back at home and resting, according to a statement on his Instagram story.
“Tell them that I am a bit afraid about what happened and that for the moment I am not going to give declarations about what happened. I want to be with my family absolutely resting until getting the final results from the blow to my head,” the statement reads.
The YouTuber added that he still hopes to participate in a planned 5 March boxing match in Dubai against former Argentine world boxing champ Marcos Maidana.
“I want to fight on March 5 in Dubai against Maidana and this is what’s going to happen,” Mr Cabrera added. “Only quick recuperation is in my head so that I can give everything the best show.”
There is some scepticism about Yao Cabrera’s exact version of events, as he has a history of pranks involving fake deaths.
In October, he and another influencer faked her death using ketchup in a bathtub for a video, and in December 2020, Mr Cabrera made a hoax video of his own where two gunmen on motorcycles appeared to murder him.
The influencer has attracted controversy elsewhere too, including riding out of a bicycle shop on a bike he didn’t pay for, being arrested for throwing a massive house party during quarantine, and being accused of trying to spike a popular Mexican influencer named Caeli’s drink during a party in 2018, which he denies.
