UPDATED 2/27, 8:08 a.m. ET: The district attorney’s office in Manhattan has declined to bring an assault charge against Gusmane Coulibaly, who was arrested this week in connection with a snowball fight.
Per a report from Gothamist, prosecutors did not pursue the assault charge, though lesser charges against Coulibaly, including misdemeanor obstructing government administration, did stick.
Coulibaly has since been freed on supervised release.
See original story below.
The New York Police Department is facing backlash over the arrest of Gusmane Coulibaly, a content creator who was allegedly involved in Monday’s Washington Square snowball fight.
According to Long Island News 12, Coulibaly — aka “Diaper Man” on social media — was taken into custody Thursday after authorities accused him of assaulting a police officer. The 27-year-old is also reportedly facing obstruction of governmental administration and disorderly conduct charges.
The NYPD confirmed Coulibaly’s arrest via X, claiming the NYC resident was arrested “less than three weeks ago for an attempted robbery in the transit system.”
Social media users immediately slammed the NYPD post as misleading. Many pointed out that the attempted robbery arrest stemmed from an online prank video in which Coulibaly attempted to find “NYC’s wildest borough” by confronting various people. Around the 4-minute mark, he approached a man in the Bronx subway system and asked, “Where’s my money?” The man said he had no idea who Coulibaly was, before the YouTuber boldly said, “If I get mad, I’m gonna have to run your pockets.”
The man then said he was NYPD before two other plainclothes officers stepped in and put Coulibaly in handcuffs. Coulibaly told the cops that he was simply doing a prank to see which borough had the most “crash outs.” The video then cut to the YouTuber exiting the 161 Precinct in the Bronx.
“This is part of the job, so I’m not really scared of nothing,” he said. “We back outside… I got court, though.”
The NYPD said officers were searching for three other suspects in connection to the Washington Square snowball fight. The department claimed two officers were injured during the incident after they were pelted with snowballs at close range.
“This was ice chunks. This was rocks. And this was an attack on police officers,” the Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry said. “This was a message that was sent, in regards to anyone who dares put their hand on a New York City police officer. That you will be arrested now.”
Complex’s Jordan Rose was on the scene covering the snowball fight shortly before police arrived.
“And while it was crazy and you had to duck, dodge, and weave some of the snowballs being thrown, it was still just a snowball fight,” he recalled.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani expressed a similar sentiment when asked about the injured officers Wednesday.
“I’ve said time and time again that I, having seen these videos, to me, it was a snowball fight that got out of hand and it should be treated accordingly,” he said, as reported by CNN. “I’m not going to be banning snowball fights or organized snowball fights. I’ve shared my thoughts with New Yorkers, and I continue to believe that what we are seeing in this response of this winter blizzard from the city workers as a whole, that includes the hardworking men and women of the NYPD, is part of why the city is getting back on its feet, and I’m appreciative of that work.”