Youtuber Nil Ojeda sued for encouraging followers to fake drowning on beaches as he broke 'influencer law'

25-year-old Nil Ojeda, who has more than four million subscribers to his YouTube channel, asked his followers to pretend to be drowning in front of lifeguards on two of Spain’s best-known beaches.

The city of Alicante has filed a formal complaint with the prosecutor's office, urging them to take down Ojeda's social media accounts, after he encouraged people to pretend they’d got in to difficulty in the water in both San Juan and el Postiguet, on Sunday 7 July, as part of an apparent prank.

“Find a professional lifeguard, get in front of them, and start to act like you were drowned out of the water on the ground,” Ojeda said on a video he posted on his Youtube channel. “If you deserve it, you will get your prize.”

The reward promised was a bundle of clothing and other items from Ojeda’s fashion brand, Milfshakes. Authorities were soon made aware of the prank, which was apparently been copied by many young people.

A representative of Alicante told The Times that the viral stunt had caused chaos on the beaches on that July day, when a yellow flag was flying to warn of potentially dangerous wind or waves.

Legal advisers for Alicante, which is run by the conservative Popular Party (PP), told the council that it had grounds to sue the YouTuber, as well as Milfshakes, for the issues caused by the prank.

Manuel Villar, the deputy mayor of Alicante, said in a video statement, said: “It created danger and a risk for the rest of the people on the beaches.”

The council said that it was preparing to file a lawsuit via the public prosecutor on the basis that the stunt may have constituted a crime of causing danger. This is punishable in Spain with a jail term of between three months and a day to a year, or a fine.

Lawyers also believe that Ojeda may have violated Valencia’s regional public entertainment law “by organising an event that compromises public safety without the proper authorisations”. The challenge may have breached a known as the "influencer law," which prohibits audiovisual communications that promote actions that could incite criminal behaviour.

Ojeda appears to have removed the video, as well as any mention of the prank, on his Youtube channel. The social media star has nearly two million followers on Instagram, four million on TikTok, and nearly 4.5 million subscribers on YouTube.

He started his YouTube channel in 2016, and soon became a familiar face in Spain. His popularity has led to collaborations with major brands like McDonald's and also the launch of his clothing line, Milfshakes. 

His previous success as an influencer led to him winning the 2024 Digital Entrepreneurship Idol Award, but it’s not clear how this will impact his career.