The Metropolitan Police (Met) has been criticized over its failure to arrest TikTok prankster Bacari Ogarro, more known by his screen name "Mizzy."
The 18-year-old Hackney man became notorious after he and a handful of individuals stormed into several homes across London, particularly a home of one young family in an undisclosed location.
In the video, Ogarro and his group entered the property and allegedly mocked its residents. The incident only ended when the male homeowner told Ogarro's group that he had children, who were heard looking for their father in the video.
Other stunts included him picking up an elderly woman's pet dog and running away, harassing women on trains and parks, destroying books at a library, and riding an e-bike at a grocery store while security guards stopped him, among others.
While Ogarro's TikTok account was taken down, his almost 39,000-subscriber YouTube channel was still active for a few hours this morning before it was deactivated.
In his last video, he boasted about all the publicity he had garnered, saying the criticism for his stunts only helped him generate more engagement.
At the same time, Ogarro clarified the context behind the prank videos, saying most of them were taken "last year" and have since "changed" as a person. He also warned his followers not to replicate his stunts as he would not "condone" anyone doing so.
Ogarro ended his video by saying he was planning to "switch up" his content moving forward.
Backlash against Mizzy
Ogarro's recent pranks were only the latest of his numerous run-ins with the law.
He was previously arrested for harassing orthodox Jews in London, doing several pranks targeted against them.
If anything, the latest stunts only proved Ogarro to be a nuisance to Londoners.
British shadow digital, culture, media, and sports minister Alex Davies-Jones dismissed Ogarro's content as "disturbing and upsetting."
"YouTube [and] TikTok seem happy to allow this irresponsible content to proliferate on their platforms," she said. "It's unacceptable."
Conservative London Assembly member Susan Hall called on the Metropolitan Police to shut Ogarro's platform down by arresting him.
"No legitimate social media platform should be hosting this thug's vile videos," she said.
The Met said they are "aware" of the footage Ogarro and his associates were posting on social media, and they are "investigating the circumstances" regarding the pranks.
Met Police Central East Command Unit detective chief superintendent James Conway reassures the public that the force is "taking the matter very seriously" and is investigating the string of events involving Ogarro.
Meanwhile, a representative from TikTok said the platform's community guidelines "prohibit content promoting criminal activity," and they have banned accounts like Ogarro's for breaching the guidelines.
Ogarro not concerned
When asked about the criticisms against him, Ogarro told The Independent he was careless about the reactions because he values more about getting engagement for all his stunts.
"[I]t's the fact that people are talking that's important," he said. "Controversy, even though it's not good, is the best way to blow up on social media."
