An American influencer and YouTuber known for his bodybuilding videos was found dead in Thailand on Tuesday after he drowned in a lake, according to Thai police.
The 32-year-old Texas-based bodybuilder best known for his viral workout videos, body transformation content and motivational posts, was reportedly pulled from the lake behind the house he was renting in Bang Phli District, Samut Prakan Province, at 3pm local time.
According to Thairath News, Bang Phli police station deputy investigator Weerapong Rupsuay received a report of an American man acting erratically in the district’s village before his body was discovered by divers in the lake.
Divers found his body about 20m away from the lake’s edge after searching for 30 minutes and the Ramathibodi Chakri Naruebodin Hospital will conduct an autopsy, according to the publication.
An unnamed witness told Thairath News that Murphy was seen “experiencing a psychotic episode” before “he ran into the village lake”.
It’s believed Murphy became agitated after an encounter with a village security guard during which he was described as “behaving abnormally”.
The security guard told Thairath News that Murphy “shouted” and began “rolling on the road before making gestures of praying to God”.
Investigators reportedly searched the house Murphy was renting and his car, where they located two unused syringes on the driver’s seat and unspecified white pills.
It’s also been reported that Murphy “vandalised” the inside of the house with paint and damaged furniture and home decorations, as seen in photos published by the Thai news outlet.
The rental has been described by the owner as a “beautiful and cherished” lake house worth 22 million Baht ($950,000) that she was renting to Murphy for 35,000 Baht ($1500) a month.
Murphy’s girlfriend spoke to Thairath News under a pseudonym and said they had been dating for three years but only started living together three months before his death.
She claimed she never witnessed unusual behaviour from him and never saw him use illicit drugs.
In the wake of his death, fans flooded his most recent Instagram post shared at the weekend with messages of heartbreak and memories of the influencer.
Murphy became popular during YouTube’s fitness boom after posting a body transformation video in 2016.
His workout content attracted tens of thousands of views, helping him grow his YouTube channel to more than two million subscribers.
His Instagram account also has a large following through motivational posts, training clips, and fitness lifestyle content.
In 2016, Murphy entered the NPC Dallas Europa Games Men’s Physique competition and came in third place.
Throughout 2020 and 2021, longtime followers began to see a significant shift in his fitness content after he became focused on sharing videos about spirituality, meditation, prolonged fasting, personal awakening experiences, and psychedelic use.
His family are yet to confirm his death.
Lifeline: 13 11 14.
