Desmond Amofah, a YouTube gaming vlogger known online as “Etika,” was found dead by New York police on Tuesday after he was reported missing last week. He was 29.
Amofah posted YouTube videos and live-streams focused on Nintendo games and other titles. A body later confirmed to be Amofah’s was found in the East River on Tuesday morning, according to New York law enforcement officials. Police had been searching for him since June 20, after Amofah posted a video on YouTube discussing suicidal thoughts (which has since been removed).
The New York Police Department confirmed in a tweet that Amofah was found dead. He had been last heard from on June 19 at about 8 p.m., according to police.
A day before he was reported as missing, Amofah had posted an eight-minute video to his YouTube channel TR1Iceman in which he appeared to express suicidal thoughts. “I’m sorry for leaving such a stained legacy,” he said in the video, which has been reposted by other users on YouTube. “I hope that my story maybe helps to make YouTube a better place in the future where people know boundaries and limits and how far things should go.”
Last fall, Amofah’s primary YouTube account was terminated for “multiple or severe violations of YouTube’s policy on nudity or sexual content,” according to the video platform. After uploading porn to his channel, Amofah posted a message on Reddit saying in part, “And now, it’s my turn to die. I love you all.” In April, he live-streamed a standoff with police in Brooklyn after he had allegedly threatened to harm himself, Kotaku reported.
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Etika’s fans have launched a petition on Change.org asking YouTube to restore his channel “so we can remember his legacy.”
Amofah’s TR1Iceman channel on YouTube currently has 134,000 subscribers, while his Twitter account has 332,000 followers and his Instagram has 273,000.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline operates a free and confidential 24-hour service at 800-273-8255 for anyone thinking about suicide or who is worried about a friend or loved one. It also operates an online chat service at this link.