A Taiwanese online personality has allegedly gone missing after he was recorded during a livestream apparently being beaten in a Cambodian casino.
Chen Neng-chuan (陳能釧), also known as Wan An Hsiao Chi (晚安小雞, “Good Night Chicks”), is known for producing paranormal content on Facebook.
His family has been unable to reach him since his last upload, which showed him being beaten and was watched by thousands of viewers, an associate said in a statement yesterday morning.
Photo: Screengrab from Chen Neng-chuan’s Facebook page
The Criminal Investigation Bureau told the Chinese-language United Daily News that authorities had not yet received a report regarding Chen’s alleged disappearance.
However, Preah Sihanouk Province Governor Kuoch Chamroeun yesterday wrote on Facebook, asking people for help finding Chen.
A video on Chen’s channel showed him entering KB International Casino in Sihanoukville in the early hours on Monday, seemingly without permission.
Talking into a cellphone, Chen said in the video that he was investigating rumors of human trafficking and fraud that involved the casino, adding that tips from viewers alleged several Taiwanese had disappeared after accepting employment there.
Soon after he entered, Chen was confronted by armed security guards and tried to flee after an increasingly heated conversation, the video showed.
Sounds of a struggle could be heard after Chen dropped his phone, which was then picked up by a man wearing a uniform.
A glimpse of Chen lying prone on the floor was captured before the phone was turned off.
Later that evening, Chen broadcast live again, saying that he was safe and had been robbed.
Writing on Chen’s Facebook page, a person claiming to be his wife said that he had not communicated with his family since the video was made and that his driver and local police had been asked to investigate.
Chen’s alleged wife and an associate who did not identify himself later made a joint video statement reiterating that Chen’s whereabouts and condition remained unknown and that a report had been filed with local law enforcement.
They said that Chen’s family and production team would fly to Cambodia today to deal with the matter.
Internet personality Liu Yu (劉宇), also known as Si Cha-mao (四叉貓), questioned the authenticity of Chen’s videos.
“All of his money had been stolen, and he can still keep his cameras to do a live broadcast,” Liu said. “Who would believe that?”
Liu said that he used Google Maps and found that Chen was actually in a safe place, surrounded by multiple hotel resorts.
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