A popular influencer known online as Ashlee Jenae, real name Ashly Robinson, has tragically died on what should have been a dream trip to Zanzibar, shortly after her boyfriend, Joe McCann proposed in Tanzania. She had also recently celebrated her 31st birthday.
A video of the engagement saw McCann get down on one knee at Serval Wildlife, a luxury safari lodging, in Tanzania, Kilimanjaro. He has since been held by police in Tanzania for questioning, while they await postmortem results, according to a CBS report.
Serval Wildlife has since posted a statement extending its deepest condolences to Robinson's family and said it would like to clarify that her death "did not occur at Serval Wildlife. As confirmed in the statement released by the Zanzibar Police Force, the incident took place in Zanzibar."
It added, "[Robinson] visited our premises and had a positive and enjoyable experience [...] She left happy and in good condition. She did not share content from Zanzibar, which may have led to confusion regarding the location of the incident."
Robinson's family said she was "found unconscious in her villa and taken to hospital, where her death was confirmed hours later", and said that her death doesn't make any sense. It is said that hotel staff had previously raised the alarm over a suicidal guest.
While speaking to CBS, Robinson's mother described her daughter as light and happy, saying particularly so as she had recently celebrated her birthday as well as getting engaged to her partner. "We are confused about how that could change so drastically."
Everyone's clicking on...
Zanzibar's North Unguja police chief, Benedict Mapujira, said to press, "[Robinson] was taken to hospital for treatment that night (8 April), but she passed away the following day (9 April)."
Robinson's last post depicted her feeding a giraffe, with the caption "Chapter 31 and I’m exactly where I need to be".
Who was Ashlee Jenae?
Ashlee Jenae was the online username of Ashly Robinson, a 31-year-old model and influencer who posted travel, fashion and lifestyle content to her 133,000 followers on Instagram. She was in a relationship with Joe McCann, a businessman almost fifteen years older than her.
Robinson sadly died during a trip to Zanzibar, a holiday to celebrate her birthday and during which her partner proposed. Her family have said her death does not make sense.
Who is Joe McCann?
Joe McCann was Ashlee Jenae's partner, who she regularly posted about on her socials. McCann is apparently a crypto millionaire and according to his LinkedIn, the Founder and CEO of "a stealth software company specialising in crypto-native infrastructure and risk management tooling".
The couple would regularly share photos and videos of them flying on private jets, sampling fine dining meals and enjoying sports games together, as well as travelling the world.
According to a post last year, McCann embarked on a partnership with Australian rapper, Iggy Azalea, Motherland, an online casino with a social twist.
He has not commented publicly on Ashlee Jenae's death and his Instagram account now shows no posts. His last posts on X are related to crypto.
How did Ashlee Jenae die?
At the moment, it is not clear. A police investigation is still ongoing.
Robinson's parents said McCann contacted them 11 hours after an incident linked to her death, but gave very little detail. They later learned from the hotel, Zuri Zanzibar, that she had died.
Police chief Benedict Mapujira told the BBC the couple had an argument, and hotel staff moved them into separate rooms. However, the hotel has not confirmed the police's version of events.
Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
