Four-time kickboxing world champion Andrew Tate was reported to have died yesterday after Piers Morgan's Twitter account was hacked and shared fake news of his demise.
The TV host's social media account was compromised in the early hours of the morning, posting a series of offensive tweets and threats to release private messages to and from Morgan involving big name celebrities. But the most viral of the tweets was one that announced Tate had been killed in Dubai, with over 4.6million people reading the news.
Tate has appeared three times on Morgan's show, most recently last week, with a number of memorable moments going viral involving the pair. They appear to have formed something of a friendship, which would have made it more believable for Twitter users who saw the post.
Morgan's account appears to be in the process of being recovered, with his tweets now wiped and his profile picture removed to show just a generic post. The tweet about Tate, which was made between a series of other offensive messages, read: "BREAKING NEWS: Andrew Tate has been found shot dead in Dubai." Tate responded by joking that he is "Hard to kill."
The tweet was one of many posted by hackers, with another Tate-related message saying "I like Andrew Tate's c***". There were also multiple tweets mocking his admiration for the recently deceased Queen Elizabeth II. One said "f*** the queen," while another added "P***in' on the f***in' Queen n****".
Hackers then shared private messages between Morgan and tennis icon Andy Murray, with the conversation seemingly centred around the World Cup in Qatar. The DMs, dated December 18 as the World Cup final was being played, show Murray telling Morgan it's been a "tough few weeks there", seemingly referencing Cristiano Ronaldo's poor showing at the tournament.
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And Morgan, who has been trolled on social media over his admiration for Ronaldo following their explosive recent interview, joked that it was "f***ing terrible". He also noted that he "can't imagine how Ronaldo must be feeling..." There appears to be a further message from Morgan, but the hackers chose not to share it.
The journalist's Instagram appears not to have been compromised, but he has yet to respond to the hacking in any way. Twitter have in the past recovered accounts and restored them to their owners, particularly in the case of big name celebrities such as Morgan, who hosts the popular Piers Morgan Uncensored on Talk TV.
Tate appeared unfazed by the incident, making his light joke and continuing to post throughout the night. He is currently living in Dubai, and has been toying with a return to the ring for a massive money boxing match with a YouTube personality such as Logan Paul or KSI.
