Young illustrator dies after falling for commission scam
SingTao · 2 SOURCES1 day ago5 MIN
Summary
A 25-year-old independent illustrator using the online name “Bu Chi Xi You” (不吃西柚) reportedly lost more than 40,000 yuan after falling into an online scam disguised as a commission request, according to mainland media reports cited by SingTao and on.cc. She said the fraudsters claimed to be customer service staff from second-hand marketplace Xianyu and told her her account had been frozen, then pressured her to generate large transaction flows and scan codes to unlock it. After the loss, she posted online seeking more commissions and offered recent half-body illustrations for 250 yuan each, while saying she faced monthly repayment and living costs of about 8,000 yuan. Her father later posted from her account that she died after falling from the 32nd floor in the early hours of September 18, and police have said the fall was not a criminal case while the fraud report remains under investigation.
Key Points
- SingTao said the illustrator was financially strained and eager to sell artwork for living expenses before she was drawn into a fake commission trap.
- In a September 17 post, she said she had been scammed on September 13 and 14 and lost more than 40,000 yuan.
- She wrote that the loss included 10,000 yuan of her own money and about 24,000 yuan from various loans.
- on.cc said the scam also involved prompting her to scan QR codes and activate lending apps, worsening her repayment burden.
- Her father later announced through her account that she fell from the 32nd floor at about 1am on September 18.
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong readers, the case is a stark warning that fraudsters can exploit freelance work platforms, fake customer service identities and urgent payment problems to target people already under financial stress. It also shows how relatively small creative incomes can leave victims exposed when scammers push them into borrowing, making early verification of platform contacts and payment requests especially important.