American YouTuber swings from fame to shame in Thailand

Police arrested an American YouTuber at his home in Pattaya yesterday after he physically assaulted his Thai girlfriend by hitting her with a golf club. The man claimed the attack was staged for a video on his YouTube channel.

The Thai woman, 20 year old Kanittha, and her younger sister sought assistance from a 55 year old maid named Anchulee via the LINE application at around 2.30pm yesterday, saying her 30 year old American boyfriend, Connor Murphy, became violent and assaulted her.

The sisters hid in a bedroom before escaping through a window, with Kanittha sustaining injuries from the golf club attack and her sister from a broken glass window.

The maid then reported the matter to Huay Yai Police Station officers who rushed to the scene with rescuers from the Sawang Boriboon Foundation.

Murphy refused to surrender to the officers and hid in a bathroom. Neighbours and Murphy’s sister successfully persuaded him to come out an hour later. He also had a cut to his stomach from the broken glass window.

Kanittha told police she was asleep in her bedroom when she heard the sound of breaking glass. When she went to investigate, she found Murphy in a rage, reportedly shouting incoherently and bleeding. He then attacked her with a golf club, prompting her to hide in her sister’s bedroom.

A friend of Murphy claims the incident was staged for a video on his YouTube channel, Connor Murphy. However, police remain unconvinced, citing neighbour’s CCTV footage that appears to show Murphy making a loud noise and acting strange before attacking the Thai girlfriend.

Murphy has not yet been formally charged. Police are waiting for him to recover before conducting further questioning.

Connor Murphy is an American YouTuber with over 2.4 million subscribers known for his bodybuilding and lifestyle videos. He recently began filming content in Pattaya.