Sky Williams says he owes players over $ 200,000 in debt

• Sky Mansion founder Sky Williams told Insider he owed members of the esports community between $ 200,000 and $ 250,000.
• Williams says money is owed to around 13 people who gave him loans between 2013 and 2020.
• “I recognize the pain I have caused and aim to rectify it,” Williams told Insider.
• Williams is a well-known YouTube and video game streamer with over 800,000 YouTube subscribers and 260,000 Twitch subscribers.
• There are also allegations of abuse in the “Sky Mansion” communal houses.
• Visit the Insider homepage for more stories.

Members of the “Super Smash Bros.” esports community have accused the founder of “Sky Mansion” Sky Williams, a YouTuber and video game streamer, owing hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.

In a phone call with Insider on Friday, the 30-year-old said he owed members of the esports community between $ 200,000 and $ 250,000. He said he owed this money to around 13 people who gave him loans between 2013 and 2020.

When asked if all of these people were part of the

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esports community, Williams said most of them are.

“I recognize the pain I have caused and aim to rectify it,” Williams, who has over 800,000 YouTube subscribers and 260,000 live followers.

Diffusion

Twitch platform, Insider said.

Allegations against Williams have gone viral in the gaming community

Stories of people saying Williams owes them money have gone viral on Twitter and in the gaming community.

One of the most high-profile allegations came from Spencer Samuelson, 30, a friend and former roommate of Williams, who says he loaned Williams $ 55,000 in 2017. He wrote in a TwitLonger story that he loaned the money to Williams because he had problems with the IRS and feared jail time.

Williams told Insider he remembers telling Samuelson about his financial worries and, although he did not consult a lawyer or accountant at the time, he feared he would be sent to jail.

—Samuelson (@iamaSamuelson) July 8, 2020

Samuelson said that when Williams told him he needed the money, “He said he would immediately work on getting his content up and running and pay me back a thousand dollars a month.” But Samuelson said he never received even $ 1,000 on his investment, despite living in the mansion for a while. “I feel absolutely misled,” Samuelson said of his decision to loan Williams the $ 55,000.

Although Williams disputes certain details of Samuelson’s account, he admits that he wronged her.

There are also allegations of abuse in the “Sky Mansion” communal houses.

Williams has been at the center of a controversy in the esports and Twitch community over his “Sky Mansion” townhouses in California. Some people allege a culture of grooming and abuse, as well as a toxic power structure. Williams says he financed the homes with his own money and his friends’ money between 2017 and 2020.

The main “Sky Mansion” at Hacienda Heights housed various players and streamers, many of whom hosted or participated in. “Super Smash Bros.” tournaments, like Williams. The number of residents in the houses has been disputed. Williams estimated to Insider that 13 or 15 people lived in the main mansion at one point, and denies claims underage girls had stayed at home.

Williams said he hopes to continue broadcasting on Twitch and find other ways to make money in order to pay off his debts.

Update: This article has been updated with comments from Spencer Samuelson.