A 12-year-old boy described as a 'prankster' has died after an apparent attempt to recreate a scene from the Netflix series Squid Game. Sebastian Cizman was found unresponsive at his home in Castleford on June 27 and later pronounced dead in hospital.
An inquest in Wakefield heard that Sebastian had been playing in the garden before going inside, saying he was tired. A cousin discovered him unresponsive while bringing him an ice cream. Police found an image on his phone of a character from the show who is depicted hanging.
Detective Sergeant Paul Bayliss told the inquest that Sebastian's interest in Squid Game, combined with his 'prankster nature', provided a hypothesis for his death. Sebastian had previously pretended to be unconscious while play fighting. His family believed he may have been trying to recreate what he had seen.
Assistant coroner John Hobson recorded a conclusion of misadventure, describing the death as a 'very tragic set of circumstances'. Sebastian's parents, Marcin and Katarzyna, said he was a happy boy with no mental health issues and believed his death was a tragic accident.
Sebastian was a popular pupil at St Wilfred's Catholic High School, described by headteacher Dr Philip Dore as 'the star of the class'. He had garnered over 200 positive comments from staff and was known for making his classmates laugh.
