NYC Police have pulled a dead body about half a mile from the Manhattan bridge where YouTuber Etika’s personal belongings were found.
Etika, whose real name is Desmond Amofah, is a YouTuber and Nintendo streamer. The 29-year-old has a history of mental health issues and suggested in his last video that he was suicidal.
The dead body pulled from the East River was male but has not been confirmed to match Etika’s description. The popular streamer is reportedly 6ft tall, black male and 160 pounds.
News anchor Steve Lookner reports that the NYPD may have already identified the body and is notifying the family of the deceased.
The statement from the NYPD implies they have already identified the body. It says, "Identification of the deceased is pending proper family notification." Which implies they're waiting to publicly ID the body until they've notified the family.
— Steve Lookner (@lookner) June 25, 2019
Some of Etika’s belongings found on the Manhattan Bridge earlier this week include essentials such as his wallet and phone. Other personal items found include a metro card, debit card, and Nintendo Switch.
Have you seen Desmond Amofah aka Etika?
He was last heard from June 19 at about 8PM by phone. He is 29 years old, approx 6 feet tall, and 160 lbs. He is a known @YouTube blogger and has many people concerned after a recent video. Call @NYPDTips anonymously with info 800-577-TIPS pic.twitter.com/SfaDa2OifJ— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) June 20, 2019
Etika is still considered a missing person at the time of writing and the NYPD investigation is ongoing. Reports suggested that the dead body found in the East River matches his description are uncorroborated.
In the last video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Etika expressed regret over past mistakes and apologized while looking visibly upset.
The description of the video, which has since been deleted, was equally as troubling, stating: “I mislead so many of you, I manipulated, I lied, I shifted blame… I don’t know what awaits me on the other side, but I’m ready to face it.”
Etika added: “As far as we know, there is no life after death. My time ends now, but if there is a way for me too, I’ll send you all as many blessings as I can from the other side.”