Police Draw Guns On YouTube Star During Possible Internet Prank

BURBANK (CBSLA.com) — A social media celebrity got an unpleasant surprise Friday when his car was surrounded by police with guns drawn at him.

However, this is not the first time the man known online as "Ice Poseidon" has experienced the phenomenon people are calling another "swatting," a prank intended to draw law enforcement to a particular person or location after a threat or false report of violence has been made. Naturally, he caught it all on tape.

"ICE," a popular user on YouTube and the live gaming site Twitch, could be seen in a video getting into a vehicle on East Olive Avenue in Burbank with police in the background. The driver of the car could be heard saying, "It's a swat."

His camera captures the moment he realizes armed officers, including one with a shotgun, are behind the car, after which he says, "Somebody said some bad s--t. I'm shaken." He then puts his hands out the window and walks out, but he keeps filming until an officer yells at him to put the camera on top of the car.

In this instance, police believed the men were involved in a robbery. They were taken into custody, but police said no crime had been committed.

Swatting has become a somewhat common occurrence online. Online users, often video gamers, have had their homes raided by police fed with false information about threats of violence.

Earlier this year, Ice Poseidon was escorted off a plane when authorities were informed he was carrying a bomb. No bomb was found.

A nearby diner told CBS2 News he found it odd that ICE continued filming the entire incident.

"I think they wanted the news coverage because I saw him holding the phone up here, and then I saw him bring out his cameras as he exited the car."

Theories about who might have called the police are circulating on Ice Poseidon's Reddit page.