Mother of streamer who died during live video after 10 days of 'torture' issues heartbreaking tribute
Following the gruesome death of Raphael Graven earlier this week after 'ten days of torture', the French social media star's mother has issued a gut-wrenching statement.
The popular streamer - best known under the username 'Jean Pormanove' - boasted over 1m followers online prior to his passing, and was famed for taking part in dangerous and often humiliating stunts.
These challenges were often performed live for the viewing of his mass following.
Previously, Graven, 46, filmed himself being slapped, strangled, force-fed, as well as being gunned down with a paintball gun, and doused in harmful liquids - moves which made him a prominent figure in France's streaming community.
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Tragically, however, the internet star's proclivity for danger ultimately became his demise, and on Monday (25 Aug), he was found dead in Contes, outside of Nice.
According to The Telegraph, prior to his passing, Graven had been broadcasting live and receiving donations on the service Kick for over 298 hours - despite him reportedly suffering from a severe heart condition.
The star's mother has now issued a statement, describing her son as having 'a big heart', and claiming he'd found a second family in his local neighbourhood, in conversation with local outlet RTL.
"He had brothers in Metz, but he found brothers in Nice, he was a family, he was invited everywhere," the woman explained.
Graven's sister has also spoken out in his 'intolerable' death, believing her brother died of exhaustion whilst streaming live.
"I was very, very proud of what my brother became," she claimed. "I didn't watch everything, but I think he shouldn't have died like that, that he died of exhaustion. What he went through is unacceptable."
He is understood to have died in his sleep after what his close friends have described as a series of 'humiliation streams'.
Users who tuned into the live broadcast - which had collected over £31,000 in donations - also recalled Graven lying still under a bed cover.
Two men, Owen Cenazandotti and Safine Hamadi - known by pseudonyms Naruto and Safine - were then seen throwing plastic bottles at him.
An investigation was later opened into Graven's death by prosecutors in Nice, which included a post-mortem examination and the questioning of Naruto and Safine.
The pair were investigated back in January as part of a separate enquiry following allegations they were abusing vulnerable people in online events in a bid to secure payments from subscribers.
Graven was interviewed by police at the time, but insisted he hadn't suffered violence at their hands.
According to prosecutor Damien Martinelli, the streamer also claimed at the time the broadcasts 'were staged and aimed at creating a buzz and earning money', and that he'd made 'sums of 6,000 euros' with their help.
In a statement released on Thursday, however, Martinelli confirmed that medical examiners Graven's death 'was not traumatic in origin' and 'not related to the intervention of a third party'.
He added that 'no internal or external traumatic injuries' or burns had been found - other than a few bruises.
"The probable causes of death appear to be medical and/or toxicological," Martinelli continued.
A spokesperson for Kick has since claimed they are 'deeply saddened' by Graven's death, and have removed all co-streamers involved in his final broadcast from the streaming platform pending the outcome of the investigation.
"We are urgently reviewing the circumstances and collaborating with relevant stakeholders," the firm's representative told AFP.
"Kick's community guidelines are designed to protect creators, and we are committed to enforcing them across our platform."
Rhianna Benson