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The family of Yorkshire Wildlife Park tiger attack victim William Chapman, 24, has expressed concerns about his contact with mental health services leading up to his death, an inquest opening has heard.
William Chapman, 23, was attacked by the animal at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, in Doncaster, on Saturday. His inquest has opened at Doncaster Coroner’s Court.
Former child actor Mr Chapman’s family said he had suffered from “significant mental illness over a number of years” and was “prescribed strong medication”.
Mr Chapman’s family also said “deeply offensive media content is causing them severe distress” after US president Donald Trump shared a controversial AI-generated video mimicking the tragic incident.
Mr Trump posted footage of Mr Chapman being fatally attacked by a tiger at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park to 13 million followers on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday evening, before following this up with an AI-generated video of the US president grappling with a tiger.
Mr Trump’s sharing of the two pieces of footage on social media prompted outrage.
The official Republicans Against Trump account on X responding to the A.I. video by writing: “WTF.”
“Someone take Grandpa’s phone away,” another post uploaded to the account read.
The family of Yorkshire Wildlife Park tiger attack victim William Chapman, 24, has expressed concerns about his contact with mental health services leading up to his death, an inquest opening has heard.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park remains closed
Yorkshire Wildlife Park remains closed today.
A post on the website said: We can confirm that a serious incident has occurred on Saturday at the tiger enclosure.
“Our emergency response procedures were immediately activated, and emergency services attended the scene.
“The park will be closed today whilst we are working closely with the authorities. The Yorkshire Hive will remain open as usual.
“The safety and wellbeing of our visitors, staff and animals remain our highest priority.”
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Watch: ' It's impossible that a human could have survived an attack'
Inquest to open into William Chapman's death today
An inquest will open into William Chapman’s death at 10am in Doncaster Coroner’s Court, Civic Office, Waterdale.
Mr Chapman’s family said that a coroner would have to decide what part “significant mental illness” played in his death after he was killed in a tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Who is William Chapman? Former BBC and ITV child actor named as man killed in Yorkshire tiger enclosure
William Chapman has been named as the man who was killed by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, near Doncaster, on Saturday.
Emergency services were contacted shortly after 1.30pm on October 10 when the 23-year-old, who police said was visiting the park alone, entered the enclosure of a rare Amur tiger called Altai. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Since the incident, Mr Chapman’s early stint as an actor has come to light. He previously featured on ITV’s May Contain Nuts, alongside Harry Potter star Shirley Henderson, and in the BBC’s True Stories series, according to IMDB.
Mr Chapman’s family have described him as “bright, warm and engaging”, adding that he had suffered from “significant mental illness” over a number of years.
Recap: Coroner will have to decide if mental illness played a role in his death, family say
The family of William Chapman have said a coroner will have to decide if mental illness played a part in his death.
A statement released on Tuesday evening said Mr Chapman, who died in a tiger enclosure, suffered from significant mental illness.
His family said: “Sadly, William suffered from significant mental illness over a number of years and was consequently prescribed strong medication.
“It will be for the coroner to decide what part this played in his death.
“We would ask everybody to respect that process.”