Gone too far? Man fakes his death to see who would show up to his funeral

A Brazilian man garnered mixed reactions after faking his death to see who would show their love for him and attend his funeral. 

The 60-year-old named Baltazar Lemos, who has conducted various funerals as a “ceremonialist,” had someone share a snap of a hospital on Jan. 9 on his social media accounts and announce his death the next day. 

“At the beginning of this sad afternoon, Baltazar Lemos left us. More information coming soon,” the post read. 

His nearest and dearest expressed their grief in the comment section of the post. Some even asked for the cause of his death, but only received more details about his funeral, including its venue and schedule. 

The fake funeral was held at a small chapel on Jan. 18. A video of Baltazar reflecting on his life was played during the program, which brought some of his guests to tears. Baltazar surprised his loved ones by stepping out of the altar doors after—some ended up crying, while others were left confused. The man then calmed the attendees down and explained it was all a setup. His guests said he went too far.

In an interview with a local newspaper in Brazil, Baltazar apologized to his loved ones and said he only did it because he wanted to know who would care about him if he dies. “I had the idea five months ago. I wanted to make it look like I really died. People interpreted it in their own way. The truth is that I wanted to know who would come to my wake,” he said.

“I didn’t tell anyone, because I hoped it would work out. I had no intention of hurting, offending, or causing any harm to anyone. I truly apologize to these people,” he continued.