A viral video circulating across social media platforms appears to show a woman matching the description of influencer Ashlee Jenae being chased through a hotel stairwell and hallway by a bald man. The footage, which has racked up millions of views, claims to depict Jenae fleeing her fiancé Joe McCann shortly before she was found dead in her hotel room. But legal representatives for McCann say the video is a complete fabrication.
The clip has fueled intense online speculation around the death of the 31-year-old Miami-based influencer, who passed away in April 2026 during a birthday trip to Zanzibar, Tanzania. But in a statement released this week, McCann’s attorney, Edward Andrew Paltzik, dismissed the footage entirely. “This video is an atrocious deep fake,” Paltzik said. The legal team is now investigating who created and distributed the footage, with plans to take “forceful legal action” against those responsible.
Jenae and fiancé Joe McCann had traveled to Tanzania to celebrate her 31st birthday. Days before her death, McCann proposed during what appeared to be a safari excursion, and Jenae shared the moment joyfully on her Instagram page.
But the trip took a devastating turn. According to police reports, a disturbance was reported from the couple’s hotel room on the night of April 8. Hotel staff separated the two, moving McCann to a different villa. Hours later, a room service attendant found Jenae unresponsive. She was rushed to a local hospital, where her death was confirmed.
Tanzanian authorities have stated they believe Jenae died by suicide following what they described as a “misunderstanding” with McCann. However, Jenae’s family has publicly disputed this conclusion, calling her death “suspicious” and commissioning an independent autopsy. McCann remained in Tanzania for nearly a month cooperating with authorities before being cleared to return to the United States.
The deepfake video represents a dangerous escalation in the online conversation surrounding Jenae’s death. While public speculation has followed the case for weeks, the manufactured footage crosses a clear legal line. McCann’s legal team has not yet identified who created the clip, but they have vowed to pursue all available legal remedies. For Jenae’s grieving family, the video adds another layer of pain to an already unfathomable loss.
