Belgium in Brief: Everything for the views?

Belgium in Brief: Everything for the views?
Credit: Belga/Youtube screengrab

Imagine you are a twenty-something in Brussels somewhat known for annoying but harmless pranks in public, like throwing water balloons at strangers sitting on a park bench or dropping a phone to see if people will steal it.

But if that does not get you the attention you want, how far would you go for some YouTube views?

Pretty far, if you are Brussels Youtuber 'YaNike.'

Last Saturday, he stepped on a metro at the Beaulieu stop in Auderghem carrying a bucket filled with a mixture of oil, water, withered leaves and dog faeces.

Someone films how he walks right up to an unsuspecting stranger already sitting on the metro, pours the bucket out over him and rushes to get off the carriage – leaving behind the victim and the rest of the bewildered passengers as the doors close.

The video quickly garnered a lot of attention online, but has since been taken down by Youtube. In the meantime, the victim (a 19-year-old young man) and Brussels public transport company STIB have filed a complaint against YaNike.

"We obviously cannot tolerate such acts towards our customers," STIB spokesperson An Van hamme told reporters. "And so we obviously also don't tolerate a video being made and then distributed."

She stressed that it is "unacceptable" that STIB's customers are being humiliated in this way, as well as the fact that the Youtuber also soils the vehicle. The investigating judge has also opened an investigation.

What would you do 'for the Gram'? Let @Maajtee know.

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