The family of adored Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro gamer, bruttJ, are taking legal action against the teen’s former teams, citing negligence.
bruttJ, real name Matheus Queiroz, passed away in December 2019, at 19 years old. His esports team, Imperial Esports, cited “health complications” as the reason for his passing.
His family are now suing bruttJ’s former teams, Imperial Esports and Team Reapers, claiming that he was forced to play while in pain, and alleging that the team houses provided to players in tournaments were not to an adequate standard [via Dexerto]. It’s claimed that these factors contributed to the player’s death.
UOL reports that the promising player began suffering from “severe headaches, constant vomiting, and loss of vision” after moving into the Team Reapers house in summer 2019. Some believe this is a direct effect of the property itself, as it’s believed other team members also suffered symptoms such a nausea while living in the house. bruttJ lived in the property for approximately 15 days.
A former player said: “Some people had intestinal problems, but we’re not sure if it was because of the water or the food.”
bruttJ’s mother also claims that the house’s location – next to an airport – left players in the property with sleeping difficulties, while food shortages were also said to be a problem.
Though players eventually moved out of the property following complaints to management, bruttJ passed away just a few day later.
Imperial Esports offered around $150 USD in aid of the family’s medical costs, and sent them $1,000 USD after bruttJ passed away.
“There is a lot of evidence that reveals the lack of adequate health conditions in the gaming house,” said a lawyer representing the family.
“Above all, there is even more robust evidence that the teams did not provide healthcare to the player and failed to act when events under their responsibility were indicated.”
Both Imperial Esports and Team Reapers have denied the allegations. At the time of writing, no court date has yet been set.
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