Popular content creator and Smash Bros personality Desmond ‘Etika’ Amofah incited mass concern across social media after going on a racist Twitter tirade and getting detained by the NYPD – but now, Etika is tumbling with law enforcement for an entirely different reason.
A video surfaced on Twitter (courtesy of esports consultant Rod Breslau) that showed Etika engaging in a physical confrontation with a police officer on May 1, throwing a punch to the officer that landed him square on the ground.
The video was recorded among a throng of bystanders, which later showed the YouTuber being escorted away by a squad of officers while he yelled indistinguishably.
According to a new video, Etika got into a physical altercation with police in New York today pic.twitter.com/4Y7xlbWrKE
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) May 1, 2019
Will Etika be arrested for assaulting a police officer?
While no updates have been released via Etika’s social media accounts, ex-girlfriend and fellow streamer ‘Alice Pika’ claimed that he has not been arrested for the assault, but is instead being kept in a hospital’s mental ward for the time being.
Etika may very well be in hot water for the altercation; according to New York Penal Code § 120.08, assault on a police officer is a Class C Felony with a maximum possible sentence of 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.
Quick Etika update: A doctor just called me. He has NOT been arrested, he’s not going to jail. He’s at the mental ward of a hospital again, not saying where. I gave her as much information as I could that would make sure he STAYS in there for longer than a day!!!
— :cherry_blossom: Alice :cherry_blossom: (@TheAlicePika) May 2, 2019
Etika’s past online controversies
This wouldn’t be the first time Etika has brushed with New York’s law enforcement, either – in fact, the YouTuber was detained by police after an emotional Twitter outburst on April 29, recording the incident via an Instagram Live broadcast.
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And there goes Etika pic.twitter.com/ebzGmgE7tZ
— Tony The Fishie (@TonyTheFishie) April 29, 2019
Following the incident, Etika appeared on an episode of KEEMSTAR’s Drama Alert, where he explained the reason for his Twitter activity as being inspired by “the return of the Antichrist.”
“I’ve come to purge the planet of all human life,” Etika said in a long-winded rant. “I will be dropping nuclear missiles very, very soon on every single human being. Death means nothing. Why are you all so scared of death for?”
[Timestamp at 8:20 for mobile viewers]
Etika’s now-deleted Tweets claimed that he was a “god,” including a photoshopped image of himself holding a pistol – even writing an anti-Semitic message that reportedly read “fuck the jews.”
Etika went on a similar tirade in October 2018, posting pornographic content to his YouTube account in a conscious effort to get his channel deleted from the website.