Thunderbolt in the world of youtubers! The parents of the very popular Swan and Neo were sentenced to three years in prison and fined 100,000 euros (C$146,000) each. What crime did they commit? What will happen to their children? We tell you the whole story.
Sophie Fantasy and Grégory Inside are the parents of Swan and Néo, two young content creators on YouTube. The boys, aged 11 and 18 respectively, have been active on this platform since April 2015 and their channel now has 6.17 million subscribers.
Originally from Lyon, France, the small family is regularly exposed on social networks. Very popular among young people, Swan and Neo are known for their videos filmed in amusement parks, which show them taking on playful challenges or trying out new games.
The parents of the young designers worked in parallel at the marriage agency Eurochallenges, created by Grégory’s mother.
Sophie Fantasy and Grégory Inside were found guilty of organized fraud, abuse of weakness and moral harassment. They are said to have scammed more than 340 people between 2010 and 2014. Their marriage agency promised to connect single men located in France with women living abroad, particularly in Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia.
These customers had to pay astronomical sums to meet people. Most of the time, once there, they realized that the person was not the same as in the photos. They also realized that the entire stay was at their expense. These scams allowed Sophie Fantasy and Grégory Inside to pocket more than 3 million Canadian dollars.
On Instagram, Neo made a publication to thank the people who send him messages of support. “We’re hanging on as best we can, right now we’re mostly trying to keep Swan [from whatever happens],” he wrote.
He spoke again on his personal channel Neo The One in a 14-minute video, in which he announced that he will continue to produce content. “I’m taking up the torch,” the young man said.
Since Neo became of age on February 13, he does not need to be taken care of in the eyes of justice. At 11, his brother Swan will however have to go before the juvenile judge who will decide his future. He will either be entrusted to a member of his family, or placed in a foster family, if the judge considers that no member of his family can take care of him.
In an interview, Neo said he would do everything possible to be able to take care of his brother.
Since the creation of their YouTube channel, the parents of Swan and Neo have been suspected of exploiting their children by forcing them to shoot videos. The two boys have always maintained that this is not the case. With this fraud case, these accusations have resurfaced.
“I want to make it clear for the thousandth time since our YouTube adventure that Swan and I have never been exploited. It gets really heavy to have to repeat the obvious,” Neo said on Instagram.
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Imagine you are driving out of a car dealership in your brand new car. Now imagine having an accident just a few hours later! This is what happened to Britanny Ménard, who is fighting in court for the Quebec Ministry of Transport to reimburse her repair costs. We tell you this funny story of determination… and potholes.
On March 4, 2022, Britanny, who lives in Laval, buys a new car. The same day, she rolled over a pothole in Saint-Jérôme. A pothole is a hole created in the road when the asphalt deteriorates.
The repairs cost him $450. She decides to contact the government to reimburse her for this amount.
The Ministère des Transports du Québec pays several thousand dollars each year to motorists who damage their cars on the roads. To obtain this compensation, the damage must be caused by the poor condition of the road network.
However, in the case of Brittany, the Ministry refuses to pay, even if the sum is not so high. His reason: He considers pavement deterioration to be normal in winter and he can only do repairs if the weather permits.
Did Britanny stop there? Oh no !
Brittany decided to sue the Department of Transportation to make it pay her back the $450. She represented herself, that is to say, she presented her arguments herself, without the presence of a lawyer.
While researching, she discovered that just before her accident, five different people had reported the large pothole to the Ministry. And this one did not act to secure the scene! There were no signs or cones.
The court agreed with Brittany. The judge therefore ordered the Ministry to reimburse its repairs in addition to paying its legal costs of $108. It’s a victory for Britanny against an opponent much more powerful than her!
“I hope people will see with my story that it’s possible to get compensated even if it’s not easy,” says Britanny.
The story does not end there. To date, the Department has not paid Britanny a penny and is challenging the judge’s decision.
Britanny will therefore have to take time off from work again to return to court to plead her case. She hopes the Department of Transportation will finally reimburse her and stop dragging out the process.
All for a pothole!
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