Arya Mosallah has been criticised after water-throwing pranks sparked acid attack fears.
Arya, 22, has been receiving criticism due to a prank in which he throws water in the faces of London pedestrians. The YouTuber created two videos performing the prank, which received over a million views each and over 200,000 likes combined.
Within the last year, the number of acid attacks has increased. Figures from the Metropolitan Police highlight that the UK has one of the highest number of recorded acid attacks per person, in any country in the world. On average two acid attacks a day occur in the UK.
Due to this, some commenters have labelled the stunt “sick” and argued that it is a form of assault.
One wrote: “I would be terrified and think it was acid, especially walking around London. Acid attacks are becoming more common. I really don’t think it’s an idea people should be promoting and mocking, shame.”
However, after the release of the second video, Arya promised that if it were to get enough likes, he would release a third instalment.
Speaking to The Independent about the videos, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police has said that Mr Mosallah could have been arrested for the prank as causing “fear, alarm, or distress to members of the public” is an offence under the Public Order Act.
Since the backlash, Arya released footage of him replying to the comments made, in which he stated that people are “crying over one video that was a joke, and wasn’t even meant to be for these old boring people”.
Both videos have since been taken down, due to violating YouTube’s guidelines addressing harassment and bullying.
With an audience of over 667,000, Arya performs pranks on his YouTube channel ItzArya ranging from pouring ketchup on people’s shoes, to jumping in stranger’s cars.
Want more?
Read about the impact of YouTube pranks on the emergency services or the Irish hotel that banned vloggers.
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