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Low reported severity Media Coverage

Polish outlets report YouTube videos falsely announcing the deaths of a TV presenter and the First Lady with AI-generated hospital-bed images; reported to NASK

Polish outlets reported on 4 October 2026 that a YouTube channel published videos whose titles and thumbnails falsely announced the deaths of television presenter Omenaa Mensah and of First Lady Marta Nawrocka, each shown in a hospital bed. Plejada describes the Mensah thumbnail as a graphic generated with artificial intelligence; Fakt describes the Nawrocka thumbnail as an AI-generated photo with a caption suggesting something terrible had happened to her. Mensah's husband, InPost founder Rafał Brzoska, posted on 3 and 4 October that his wife was alive, that one channel had been 'killing off' dozens of well-known people for weeks, that the matter was reported to NASK and the channel blocked, and that the videos were secured for the National Prosecutor's Office with a request for an investigation. He also wrote to President Nawrocki about the First Lady video. Neither depicted woman has commented publicly in the inspected sources; no deceived viewer or financial loss is reported.

AI system
Unidentified image tool (reported)
Occurred
3 Oct 2026
Reported
4 October 2026
Event location
Poland
What the AI did
Depicted or impersonated the person
Reported harm
Reputational Harm
Whose AI use
Someone else’s AI use
Setting
Everyday life · Public services
Evidence
AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 5 sources, 1 underlying account
5 claims: 5 reported. 5 open questions
People reported harmed
At least 2 people

AI system as recorded: Unidentified AI image generation used for YouTube thumbnails depicting Omenaa Mensah and Marta Nawrocka in hospital beds under false death announcements, as described by Plejada (Onet) and Fakt; the videos themselves are not described

What Happened

The videos. Plejada (Onet, 4 October 2026) reports that a video appeared on YouTube whose title suggested that Omenaa Mensah was dead, with a manipulated image showing her in a hospital bed, and describes the thumbnail as a shocking graphic generated with artificial intelligence. next.gazeta.pl describes the thumbnail text as announcing her 'tragic end at 47', with a black ribbon and the caption 'SAD NEWS'. Fakt (Polityka) reports a similar YouTube video about First Lady Marta Nawrocka whose thumbnail used an altered, AI-generated photo of her in a hospital bed with a caption suggesting something terrible had happened; gazeta quotes its title asking what happened to her at 40.

Response. Mensah's husband Rafał Brzoska wrote on Instagram on 3 October that his wife had again been 'killed off', this time on YouTube, that she was well, and that platforms needed immediate procedures (Plejada, Fakt, Wprost). On 4 October he wrote to President Nawrocki that the First Lady was also being 'killed off' (Fakt). He said one channel had specialised in such videos about dozens of well-known people for weeks without consequence, that the channel was reported to NASK and blocked, and that over 20 GB of material was secured for the National Prosecutor's Office with a request for an ex officio investigation (Fakt, Wprost). Actress Joanna Opozda commented that a similar video said she had died (Plejada, Fakt).

AI involvement. The AI description comes from the outlets: Plejada for the Mensah graphic and Fakt for the Nawrocka photo. Brzoska's posts speak of scams and deepfakes generally. No source describes the video content beyond the thumbnails, names a tool, or says who made the videos.

Limits. All five outlets relay Brzoska's posts; the thumbnail descriptions are the outlets' own. Neither Mensah nor Nawrocka is quoted. No viewer harm, financial loss, prosecutor decision or YouTube statement is reported. The research agent did not inspect the videos or posts.

Reported harm

Two living public figures were falsely announced dead on YouTube with thumbnails showing them in hospital beds, which Plejada and Fakt describe as AI-generated images; the reported harm is the false depiction itself, which Mensah's husband publicised and reported to NASK and the prosecutor (his posts, relayed by Polish outlets). No viewer loss is reported.

Outcome

Ongoing

Brzoska says the channel was reported to NASK (Poland's research and academic computer network, which handles abuse reports) and blocked, that more than 20 GB of videos were secured for the National Prosecutor's Office, and that he tagged the National Prosecutor's Office and Waldemar Żurek asking for an investigation to be opened ex officio (Fakt, Wprost). No opened investigation, platform statement or statement by either depicted woman is reported.

What remains unknown

  • Who operated the YouTube channel and what tool produced the thumbnails.
  • What the videos contained beyond the thumbnails and titles.
  • Whether NASK, YouTube or the National Prosecutor's Office acted on the report.
  • Whether Mensah or Nawrocka have commented; neither is quoted.
  • Whether any viewer was deceived or suffered loss.

What the evidence supports

AI involvement: reported. Plejada states that the Mensah video was accompanied by a graphic generated with artificial intelligence showing her in a hospital bed, and Fakt states that the Nawrocka thumbnail was an AI-generated photo of the First Lady in a hospital bed with a caption suggesting something terrible had happened. The generated images are the false depictions that constitute the reported harm. The attribution is the outlets' own description; Brzoska's posts refer to scams and deepfakes generally, no tool is named and the research agent did not inspect the thumbnails.

5 claims: 5 reported. What the statuses mean

Reported A video appeared on YouTube whose title suggested that Omenaa Mensah was dead, with a thumbnail showing her in a hospital bed under a 'sad news' caption; Plejada describes the graphic as generated with artificial intelligence.

Causal attribution. The existence and content of the thumbnail are the outlets' descriptions of material Brzoska posted; the AI-generation statement is Plejada's own and is not repeated by Fakt Ludzie or gazeta.

  • plejada.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Materiał opatrzono szokującą grafiką wygenerowaną przy użyciu sztucznej inteligencji.'; 'W serwisie YouTube pojawiło się fałszywe nagranie, którego tytuł sugerował, że Omenaa Mensah nie żyje.'
  • next.gazeta.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Na zdjęciu jego żona została przedstawiona w szpitalnym łóżku, obok pojawiła się czarna wstążka'
  • ludzie.fakt.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'opatrzona grafiką przedstawiającą Mensah na szpitalnym łóżku'
Reported A similar YouTube video used an altered photo of First Lady Marta Nawrocka in a hospital bed, which Fakt describes as AI-generated, with a caption suggesting something terrible had happened to her.

Causal attribution. Fakt's own description of the thumbnail shown in Brzoska's X post; gazeta describes the same thumbnail without the AI attribution.

  • fakt.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Wygenerowane przez sztuczną inteligencję zdjęcie opatrzono opisem, który sugeruje, że Pierwszej Damie stało się coś strasznego.'
  • next.gazeta.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Miniatura znów przedstawiała kobietę leżącą w szpitalnym łóżku.'
Reported Rafał Brzoska posted on 3 October 2026 that his wife had again been 'killed off', this time on YouTube, and that she was well; on 4 October he wrote to President Nawrocki that the First Lady was also being 'killed off'.

Causal attribution. Brzoska's posts as quoted by the outlets.

Reported Brzoska said one channel had specialised in such false-death videos about dozens of well-known people for weeks without consequence, that the matter was reported to NASK and the channel blocked, and that over 20 GB of material was secured for the National Prosecutor's Office with a request for an investigation.

Causal attribution. Brzoska's statements as relayed; no NASK, YouTube or prosecutor statement is reported.

  • fakt.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Właściwie wyspecjalizował się w uśmiercaniu na YouTube — łącznie kilkadziesiąt znanych osób, publikowane od tygodni, bez konsekwencji'; '20 GB materiału dla Prokuratury Krajowej i Waldemara Żurka'
  • biznes.wprost.pl(opens in new tab) supports · Polish
    'Sprawa została zgłoszona do NASK. Wszystkie filmy zabezpieczono.'
Reported Actress Joanna Opozda commented that a similar video claimed she had died.

Causal attribution. Opozda's comment under Brzoska's post, as quoted by Plejada and Fakt; no thumbnail or AI generation is described for her video and she is not counted.

Sources

5 sources inspected, from 1 underlying account. Sources that repeat one account do not corroborate each other.

How the sources were read, and where the events happened

Read in Polish by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-07 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Plejada (Onet) relays Brzoska's Instagram post and adds its own description of the thumbnail; HTTP 200. Applies to s1.

Read in Polish by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-07 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Fakt Ludzie relays the same Instagram post and the Opozda comment; HTTP 200. Applies to s2.

Read in Polish by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-07 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Fakt Polityka relays Brzoska's X posts about the Nawrocka video and adds its own description of the thumbnail; read on 2026-10-06 (HTTP 200). Applies to s3.

Read in Polish by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-07 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. next.gazeta.pl relays Brzoska's posts and describes both thumbnails; read on 2026-10-06 (HTTP 200). Applies to s4.

Read in Polish by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-07 and translated by the research agent (an AI) into English; no human translator or reviewer was involved. Biznes Wprost relays Brzoska's posts including the NASK report and prosecutor request; read on 2026-10-06 (HTTP 200). Applies to s5.

Event countries: Poland. Affected-person countries: Poland. Court countries: Unknown.

The videos targeted Polish public figures and were reported to NASK and the Polish National Prosecutor's Office (Fakt, Wprost); the depicted women are a Polish television presenter and the First Lady of Poland. Where the channel operator was located is not stated. No court proceeding is reported.

Reviewed for publication 2026-10-07: Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated) at low severity: Polish outlets describe YouTube thumbnails falsely announcing the deaths of two living public figures with hospital-bed images that Plejada and Fakt describe as AI-generated, and the husband of one reports the channel to NASK and the prosecutor. Both depicted women are public figures and are named; the AI attribution is the outlets' and no tool is identified.

People described

Omenaa Mensah, a Polish television presenter, and Marta Nawrocka, the First Lady of Poland, both depicted as dying or dead in YouTube thumbnails; other well-known people reportedly targeted by the same channel are not identified here

People reported harmed in this case

At least 2 people

0 AI participants · 2 other people harmed

Additional affected people are described without a reliable count.

Two people counted: Omenaa Mensah and Marta Nawrocka, each the subject of a described false-death thumbnail (Plejada, Fakt, gazeta). Brzoska says the same channel targeted dozens of well-known people and Fakt names four, but no thumbnail or AI generation is described for them, so they are additional unquantified people. Brzoska's own distress, YouTube viewers and commenters are not counted.

Counted once within this case. The same person may appear in other cases. This count does not establish AI causation.

Tags

#deepfake#false-death-announcement#youtube#thumbnail#image-generation#public-figure#poland#nask

Cite this case

Compiled per our published methodology: verification statuses, sourcing standards, and corrections process.

APA

NOPE. (2026). Polish outlets report YouTube videos falsely announcing the deaths of a TV presenter and the First Lady with AI-generated hospital-bed images; reported to NASK. AI incidents. https://nope.net/incidents/2026-poland-youtube-false-death-videos-ai-generated-hospital-images-of-tv-presenter-and-first-lady

BibTeX

@misc{2026_poland_youtube_false_death_videos_ai_generated_hospital_images_of_tv_presenter_and_first_lady,
  title = {Polish outlets report YouTube videos falsely announcing the deaths of a TV presenter and the First Lady with AI-generated hospital-bed images; reported to NASK},
  author = {NOPE},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {AI incidents},
  url = {https://nope.net/incidents/2026-poland-youtube-false-death-videos-ai-generated-hospital-images-of-tv-presenter-and-first-lady}
}

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