The crypto world is reeling after the mysterious and controversial “death” of 22-year-old Zerebro founder Jeffy Yu — a saga that has left the community baffled, skeptical, and increasingly suspicious.

The rumors began swirling after a disturbing video surfaced online showing Yu smoking a cigarette before appearing to shoot himself in the neck.

The authenticity of the video remains unverified, yet speculation intensified when images of his obituary began circulating on local news outlets, leading many to believe the young founder was truly dead.

However, numerous inconsistencies and unanswered questions have fueled suspicions that Yu’s death might be nothing more than an elaborate hoax.

Staging his death to launch legacoins?

On May 4 — mere moments before his alleged death — Yu published a manifesto introducing Legacoins, a new memecoin concept based on legacy, permanence, and symbolic immortality.

According to Yu, Legacoins are digital assets that developers pledge to acquire but never sell, with all holdings locked permanently upon the holder’s death.

This, he claimed, would create an immutable price floor, transforming memecoins from speculative assets into emotional and cultural artifacts.

“My death is the permanent floor,” Yu wrote, launching $LLJEFFY — the first Legacoin — the same day. His dramatic proclamation instantly ignited fierce debate across the crypto space.

But this raises a critical question: why would someone unveil a bold new token concept only to take their own life hours later?

An obituary yet a body was never found?

Another point of contention lies in Yu’s obituary. It first appeared on Legacy.com via the San Francisco Chronicle, claiming the AI founder had died at 22.

Adding to the intrigue, Yu had scheduled a blog post to publish after his death. It read:

"If you’re reading this, it’s because my 72-hour deadman’s switch triggered, so I’m not here. At least physically. This is a Legacoin — my final art piece. $LLJEFFY."

Though the post seemed to confirm his passing, the San Francisco Chronicle later removed the obituary, citing the lack of death confirmation. But that raised another question: how did the obituary get published in the first place?

As it turns out, Legacy.com allows anyone to submit an obituary via an online form — all that’s required is a $299 payment and a confirmation from a funeral home, crematorium, or a death certificate.

In Yu’s case, no such confirmation could be verified. The San Francisco and San Mateo Coroner’s Offices later stated that no one with the surname "Yu" had died in the region since Friday, April 2.

Vanished social media footprint and new album hints

Further raising eyebrows, Yu deactivated all his personal X (formerly Twitter) accounts before the alleged suicide. All early tweets promoting $LLJEFFY and discussing his supposed death were deleted.

Still, some users weren’t convinced. One pointed out that Yu had previously announced a new Zerebro album set to drop on May 30 — suggesting the entire suicide narrative was part of an elaborate marketing campaign.

"Even if his X account is now gone, don’t forget he told us a new Zerebro album is coming May 30. This fake suicide is just marketing. The ZEREBRO pump will be short and massive."

Similarly, Zerebro’s official social media accounts were also taken offline. But despite the eerie silence, the ZEREBRO coin surged 18% in the four hours after Yu’s obituary went public.

According to DEX Screener, the token had reached a peak market cap of $784 million in January but has since plummeted 94%, now hovering around $41 million amid broader market pressures and fading hype around the AI narrative.