Pokimane accuses man in streaming industry of faking relationship with her
Topics: Twitch
Claire Reid
Featured Image Credit: Pokimane / Twitter / Sipa US / Alamy Stock Photo
Topics: Twitch
Twitch stream Pokimane has said a man well-connected in the streaming world pretended to be in a relationship with her to get close to other women.
Pokimane, whose real name is Imane Anys, says the man made fake conversations and would send screenshots to other female streamers in an attempt to gain their trust.
In a stream on March 1, Pokimane said the man would also claim to have mental health issues when he approached women.
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Pokimane didn’t name the individual but said he was ‘well-networked’ within the industry.
She said: “Someone that I and many streamers have been working with for years, someone who was also employed at a large company in the industry, has targeted and manipulated girls, specifically in my community, by falsifying a romantic and sexual relationship with me.”
Pokimane said despite his claims, she had never even met him in person.
She explained: “He acted like he knew and hung out with me and my friends in person.
“This is someone I’ve never met, I’ve never hung out with them, let alone had any relationship.”
Pokimane revealed that the whole thing came to light after a number of women streamers reached out to speak to her manager.
She went on: “They proceeded to send my manager countless screenshots and videos of their conversations with him, proving the lying and manipulation that was going on.”
Pokimane said the man would also send faked explicit photos of her to the women he was talking to in the hopes of them sending similar X-rated shots back.
Pokimane said the lies went on for months and that he would then try to ‘develop romantic and sexual relationships with these girls, after gaining their trust’.
She said he would ‘hit on them, offer to fly them out, meet up in person, buy them gifts, ask for inappropriate photos of them’.
“It is truly some of the most disgusting and deplorable behavior I’ve ever heard of," she added.
Pokimane also alleged the man would leak privileged information about Pokimane that he had due to his job to gain the women's trust.
However, several women spoke to each other about their experiences and were able to expose his lies.
She went on: "If these girls didn’t end up talking to each other and piecing together the fact that he was lying, I don’t know what could have happened.”