#BalanceTonYoutubeur: Inthepanda accused of child corruption, sexual assault and rape

“An influential youtuber, […] a character aware of his notoriety, who allegedly took advantage of his status to obtain naked photos of his subscribers and who allegedly abused some of his sexual partners. “. It is the portrait of the youtuber Inthepanda that paints the long Numerama investigation, which began in 2020 and was published on December 16, 2022.

Specialized in cinema, the videographer is known in the French media landscape for his YouTube channel with 300,000 subscribers, his presence in the “Pardon le cinema” podcast and his collaborations with recognized brands and festivals.

With about twenty witnesses and presumed victims, he goes over the article serious events that would have occurred between 2014 and 2022.

YouTuber Inthepanda accused of corrupting minors

With Numerama, 5 alleged victims testify to chilling facts, spread over eight years. The oldest dates back to 2014, when the videographer regularly spoke with his community during live streams. With his fans, sometimes very young, he maintains a close relationship and maintains a sexualized atmosphere: several witnesses report that he used to demanding nude photos from his audience – mostly minors – persistently.

Several people, minors at the time of the events, claim that they would have sent it to them naked, sometimes after being manipulated or subjected to some form of pressure from this adult youtuber they admired. Acquaintances of Victor Bonnefoy corroborate these speeches in the article, saying they saw him bragging about having received these kinds of photos as minors, but also showing these photos to the people around him.

Rape and sexual assault allegations

These insistent requests for naked would have calmed down in 2016, after the publication on social networks of a rape accusation against her. Interrogated by Numerama, the alleged victim testifies to how Victor Bonnefoy would have brutally forced her to have sexual intercourse with him.

However, after this accusation, the youtubeur continues his journey. His former relatives testify to manipulation and say so in the investigation he would have done anything to discredit the story of his alleged victim, and make believe she was trying to hurt him.

It was in 2022 that the situation began to change. Since November, press releases from SensCritique or the Pardon le Cinéma podcast have announced that they are ending their collaborations with the videographer, in the wake of several incriminating testimonials on Twitter. Another testimony is rumored in the world of cinema: that of a woman who was sexually assaulted by Inthepanda in September 2022, during a festival. She explains that she allegedly kissed her without her consent before trying to get her to have sex with him, describing facts punishable by five years in prison.

When questioned by Numerama, Victor Bonnefoy, through his lawyer, replied strongly contest have committed any sexual offence, whether against adults or minors “.

While no complaints have been filed against the videographer to date, people who testified to Numerama say they are relieved they can be heard. Two years after the emergence of the free speech Twitter hashtag #BalanceTonTouttubeur and ten days after Norman Thavaud was taken into police custody as part of an investigation into child rape and corruption, we can hope that l impunity finally ends, in the closed world of youtubers.

Photo credit: YouTube screenshots/Inthepanda