This might well be the most cruel and surreal practical joke the world has ever witnessed. TikToker David Baerten decided to fake his own death after growing tired of being treated poorly by his family and friends.

What’s more, it turns out that his wife and children were in on it!

It all started when the TikToker’s children posted an emotional goodbye message to their father, who they claimed had tragically passed away.

“Rest in peace, Daddy. I will never stop thinking about you. Why is life so unfair? Why you? You were going to be a grandfather, and you still had your whole life ahead of you. I love you! We love you! We will never forget you,” they posted online. The news quickly caught wind and spread to wider family members and friends.

After the “tragic” news, the family hosted a funeral for Baerten, and it was attended by tens of family members and friends. All dressed in black, the unexpecting family were surprised when a helicopter approached the area, eventually landing close by.

Together with a camera crew, the ‘late’ father stepped off the helicopter and to the absolute bemusement of everyone present, announced that it was just a prank. “Cheers to you all, welcome to my funeral, “he said.

Many family members couldn’t believe their eyes and rushed to embrace Baerten, while others just couldn’t get their heads around what was going on, totally bewildered.

“What I see in my family often hurts me, I never get invited to anything. Nobody sees me. We all grew apart. I felt unappreciated,” Baerten said. “That’s why I wanted to give them a life lesson and show them that you shouldn’t wait until someone is dead to meet up with them,” said Baerten after the event when explaining the motives for faking his death.

It seems that the prank had its desired effect: Baeten has revealed that family members have been contacting much more since the fake death and funeral.

Watch video below: