An influencer from Thailand has tragically died after taking on a dare for $875.

Thanakarn Kanthee, known online to his social media followers as ‘Bank Leicester,’ was just 21 years old when he collapsed and died on December 25 in the Tha Mai district of Chanthaburi, Thailand, according to the Bangkok Post.

The young man from Bangkok had reportedly been hired to attend a birthday party where he was bribed to gulp bottles of whiskey in exchange for cash.

Thankam Kanthee collapsed and died after taking on a dare (แบงค์ เลสเตอร์’/Bank Lester/ Thankam Kanthee/ Facebook)

The Nation Thailand reported Kanthee was paid 30,000 baht for drinking two 350ml bottles in the challenge, amounting to around $875.

However, it wasn’t long until he appeared sick after completing the challenge.

After he vomited and lost consciousness, he was rushed to Songpeenong Hospital, where he was tragically pronounced dead at 3.40am on December 26, just hours after he arrived at the party.

Thanakarn’s cause of death has been recorded as acute heart failure, however, autopsy results have not yet confirmed if alcohol consumption played a part or if the man suffered from other underlying health issues, according to Thai Enquirer on Facebook.

He was a garland seller (Bank Lester/ Thankam Kanthee/ Facebook)

Before his tragic death, the influencer was a student at the Ritthiyawannalai School and worked selling garlands.

He first shot to Facebook fame after his rap songs to entice buyers were posted online.

It is believed Thanakarn also accepted similar risky stunts to financially support his family and grandmother, as another video has since re-surfaced of him drinking hand sanitizer.

A post on his Facebook page read: “I am willing to be bullied and insulted to just get scraps of money from the rich people in order to provide for my family.”

Another Facebook post, posted days before his death, read: “Nowadays, I don’t care who hates me, who doesn’t like me, I just ignore it and let it go because these days, I only care about the people around me.

Videos of him downing the whiskey have gone viral on social media (pup_chanasit/TikTok)

“If they don’t like me, that’s their problem, not my problem. My duty is to earn money and find happiness for myself, that’s enough.”

On Saturday, police officers conducting enquiries arrested two other social media influences, Ekachart “Em” Meephrom, from the Chanthaburi province, and Theerawat Srirot from Pathum, in connection with Thanakarn’s death, according to The Independent.

If it is confirmed that the victim was paid to drink the fatal dose, perpetrators could be charged under Section 291 of the Penal Code for causing death through negligence.

Offenders convicted of this crime can see up to 10 years behind bars and a fine of up to 20,000 baht ($580), or both.

Tributes have since been flooding in to his Facebook page, with friends describing him as a ‘very good person’ who makes ‘everyone smile’.

Mexican model, influencer and animal activist Elena Larrea has sadly died.

Elena boasted over 520,000 followers on Instagram and was known for founding Cuacolandi in 2017 – a sanctuary dedicated to rescuing horses, donkeys and other animals that had suffered animal cruelty.

The 31-year-old had a love of horses in particular.

elenaypunto/Instagram

The sanctuary confirmed the news of her passing on Instagram yesterday (March 21).

The sad statement from the team read: “With deep sorrow, we inform you of the departure of Elena Larrea, president and founder of Cuacolandia, who, unfortunately, yesterday, Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 3:30 pm, died due to a pulmonary thrombosis that caused a clot in the lung.

“We reiterate our heartfelt condolences to the entire Cuacolandia family as well as the Larrea family and close friends who fought tirelessly for animal rights.

“We thank you for all your love and dedication and wish you an eternal rest and peace.”

They concluded the post: “She will be missed.”

elenaypunto/Instagram

According to the Mayo Clinic, a pulmonary embolism (PE) occurs when a blood clot gets stuck in an artery in the lung, blocking blood flow to part of the lung.

It’s tragically one of the most common heart and blood vessel diseases in the world and affects around 1 in 1,000 people in the US each year.

It’s reported that PE occurred after Elena went under the knife for liposuction a few days prior to her passing, but this has not been confirmed.

State governor Sergio Salomon has since penned a heartfelt tribute to Elena in the wake of her untimely passing, praising her for all she did for animals in need.

“I deeply regret the death of Elena Larrea, a tireless fighter for the defence of animal welfare,” he said, as per The Mirror.

elenaypunto/Instagram

“The rescue of thousands of abused horses is testimony to her life and work. On behalf of the Puebla Government, we would like to express our solidarity to her family and friends. With the Ministry of the Environment, we can guarantee the protection of the animals at Cuacolandia.

“We will provide all the necessary help so other horses are cared for by the authorities as well as those already rescued, prioritising their wellbeing at all times. We will follow your example. Rest in peace, Elena.”

Dozens of others have also paid tribute to the influencer, with many saying that she will live on through her animal activism and sanctuary.

If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact The Compassionate Friends on (877) 969-0010.

British theater director Claire van Kampen, wife of actor Sir Mark Rylance, has died at the age of 71 following a battle with cancer.

The playwright, whose credits include creating Farinelli And The King, which Rylance starred in, passed away on Saturday (January 18) in a town in Germany.

Claire van Kampen, pictured with her husband Sir Mark Rylance, passed away on Saturday (Getty Images/Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)

Sadly, van Kampen’s death came on the same day as her husband’s 65th birthday.

Taking to Instagram, Juliet Rylance posted a statement on behalf of their family.

It read: “Our beloved mother, and wife, Claire Louise van Kampen, has passed peacefully this morning, Saturday the 18th of January at 11:47, in the ancient town of Kassel Germany, surrounded by her family.

“Concert Pianist, Composer, Musical Director, Theatre Director, Playwright, Mentor and Friend. And one of the funniest, and most inspiring women we have ever known. Claire has died of cancer on Mark’s 65th Birthday.

“We thank her for imbuing our lives with her magic, music, laughter, and love. Ring the bell, sound the trumpets reverie, something is done, something is beginning. One of the great wise ones has passed. Juliet & Mark Rylance.”

British theater director Claire van Kampen passed away in a small German town surrounded by family (Instagram/julietrylance)

Her play, Farinelli And The King, was nominated for several Olivier Awards – which are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in professional theatre industry in London.

It also received nominations for the Tony Awards, which is the same, but representing Broadway in New York.

Speaking of his wife during a 2023 interview with The Guardian, he explained how van Kampen was ‘the rock of my life‘.

Eddie Redmayne asked: “Could you tell me about your creative relationship with your wife, Claire?”

To which Rylance replied candidly: “Claire completely changed my life. We met at the National Theatre when she was musical director of a play I was in. She introduced me to that world of classical and modern music, and it was very much around music that we fell in love.

Rylance spoke candidly of his wife van Kampen, who died following a battle with cancer (David M. Benett/Jed Cullen/Dave Benett)

“We’ve always loved working together, from Phoebus Cart, our own theatre company in the 90s, to our years at the Globe, to Farinelli and the King.

“From the beginning, we were always imagining stories that we could tell together. I’ve lost count of how many projects we’ve imagined, sitting there at our kitchen table.”

He continued: “Claire came to me with two children whom I raised with her and Chris [her first husband], but we never had children of our own so, to some degree, our projects have been our children.

“They are an incredible, creative joy to us and Claire is the rock of my life. I won’t last long if she goes first.”

Tragically, van Kampen lost Nataasha, one of her two children, back in 2012 at the age of just 28 after the filmmaker suffered a brain haemorrhage.

Mandy Moore has issued a response rant after followers accused her of asking for money to support her family affected by the LA wildfires.

The actor and singer is one of hundreds of thousands of people who have been affected by the raging Californian wildfires, as five fires rampage through Los Angeles neighborhoods having already destroyed thousands of buildings, homes and acres of land.

The death toll currently stands at 10 but the authorities fear the forecast of more high winds is only going to fan the flames further and potentially claim more lives.

At a White House briefing on Thursday (January 9), President Joe Biden pledged the federal government will support California’s efforts to tackle the inferno with 100 percent of financial support for 180 days.

However, thousands have lost everything already, including Moore’s relatives who have been left homeless from the fires.

The ‘Candy’ hitmaker said her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Griff and Katt Goldsmith, lost their home and ‘everything they own’ in the Eaton fire, just weeks before the expected arrival of their first baby.

Mandy Moore didn’t hold back when sharing what she thought of the backlash (John Nacion/Getty Images)

The fundraiser, set up by Hilary Duff’s husband, Matthew Koma, details Griff, a touring musician, lost all of his drums and studio gear in the fire, adding the kit helps him to ‘make a living’.

Moore shared several fundraisers to her millions of Instagram followers, including a GoFundMe to help her relatives.

However, the Hollywood star was apparently met with backlash for sharing it as she snapped to her followers: “People questioning whether we’re helping out our own family or attributing some arbitrary amount of money Google says someone has is NOT helpful or empathetic. Of course we are.

“Our buddy Matt started this GoFundMe and I’m sharing because people have asked how they can help them.”

Moore’s Instagram Story (Instagram/@mandymooremm)

Her comment comes as fans have pointed out Moore has an estimated net worth of $14 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth, and slammed her appeal as distasteful.

One follower penned in a comment on Instagram: “Yikes… Not a good look from someone of her means.

“The audacity of a multimillionaire asking everyday people who live paycheck to paycheck to donate to her family member, when she could easily give the full goal amount without it affecting her family financially in anyway.”

Another added: “Wow millionaires having GoFundMe’s. Just the nerve.”

“You have an obscene amount of money,” a third claimed. “I think you could help your own family and also some others while you’re at it.”

The star said the home she shares with husband, Taylor Goldsmith, is ‘unliveable’ (Monica Schipper/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)

Yet in an apparent edit to her Instagram post, Moore addressed the angry comments, writing: “We just lost most of our life in a fire too.

“Kindly F OFF. No one is forcing you to do anything.”

The star previously revealed her home had been partially burned down but that ‘everyone we know lost everything’, including the houses on her street.

However, some appeared to defend Moore amid the criticism, writing that the apparent ‘trolls’ lacked empathy to her situation.

One commenter posted: “What is with the lack of compassion? Everyone in these areas lost everything including Mandy. Let’s lift each other up.

“Celebrity or not, she’s just a person and she’s asking for help for her family. Anyone would do the same.”

You can support those affected by the fires by donating to the Red Cross online, by calling (800) 733-2767 or texting REDCROSS to 90999.