 The YouTube star Etika, who had recently turned his gaming channel into a venue for rants and confrontations with police officers, was found dead in New York's East River this week after posting a video expressing suicidal thoughts, though the cause of death has not yet been released
 Desmond Amofah, 29, had attained hundreds of thousands of followers and subscribers as Etika - a Nintendo fanboy with a flat top haircut who reacted to new trailers and game announcements with exaggerated howls of emotion
 His online behaviour turned erratic in October, when, as Kotaku reported, he uploaded pornography, resulting in the first of several suspensions from YouTube
 In the following weeks, Amofah spammed his other social media accounts with suicidal messages, profane slurs and grandiose pronouncements about his own talent
 In late April, nearly 19,000 people watched as he live-streamed from his apartment window, as police officers called up to him from below
 It was unclear what brought them there, but Amofah narrated for his viewers for more than half an hour - "Look at this! My hands are shaking, I'm so scared" - before officers with tactical shields drilled through the door
 READ MORE: * YouTube's kid issues are serious - here's why * YouTube says computers are catching problem videos * YouTube suspends comments on videos of kids Police took him to a hospital, Kotaku reported, but he was soon released
 The next day, Amofah called in to the YouTube gossip show "DramaAlert" and told the host he was the Antichrist, and a god, and had no fear of death
 The host, who calls himself Keemstar, smirked and sipped a can of ginger ale. "When you say death means nothing, are you basically saying life is a simulation?" Keemstar asked
 "Yeah!" Amofah said. "Life is a video game; we're all in a video game." "If you really think about it, then why live?" Keemstar asked later in the interview
 "Just jump off a cliff? If it's just a simulation, who cares?" Amofah had more outbursts over the following days - more rants, more suspensions, more police altercations
 While many of his fans expressed concern in his Twitter feeds, others goaded him as if his disintegration were a part of his show
   On Friday, after New York police announced that Amofah had not been seen since posting a suicidal message to YouTube two days earlier, "DramaAlert" posted a video in which Keemstar, with a bucket of popcorn beside his microphone, wondered whether the whole thing might be a "stunt"
 Amofah's wallet, phone and Nintendo Switch were found on the Manhattan Bridge hours after he was reported missing, according to The Daily Dot
 On Monday, after days of searching, a 911 caller reported a man floating in the river nearby
 "All of us at YouTube are sending condolences to his loved ones and fans," the official Twitter account for YouTube creators posted after police confirmed the body's identity Tuesday
 In Amofah's final video, uploaded to an alternate account that had not been suspended, he appears to be walking through the streets of New York with the camera pointed at his face
 "I'm sorry y'all," he said. "You know, I wasn't suicidal before, I really wasn't
 But one thing I didn't realise is the walls are closing around me too fast. . I guess I am mentally ill
" He apologised to his family and friends - "Keemstar, I wish you the best," he said - and blamed himself for turning away help
 "I'm sorry for leaving such a stained legacy," he said shortly before the video's end
 "I hope that my story maybe helps to make YouTube a better place, somehow, in the future, to where people know boundaries and limits to how far things should go
" The video was later deleted for violating YouTube's terms of service. WHERE TO GET HELP: 1737, Need to talk? - Free call or text 1737 to talk to a trained counsellor  Depression
org.nz - 0800 111 757 or text 4202 Lifeline – 0800 543 354  Suicide Crisis Helpline – 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO) Kidsline – 0800 54 37 54 for people up to 18 years old
 Open 24/7. Youthline – 0800 376 633, free text 234, email talk@youthline.co.nz, or find online chat and other support options here
 Rural Support Trust - 0800 787 254 Samaritans – 0800 726 666  What's Up – 0800 942 8787 (for 5–18 year olds)
 Phone counselling available Monday-Friday, noon–11pm and weekends, 3pm–11pm. Online chat is available 3pm–10pm daily
 thelowdown.co.nz – Web chat, email chat or free text 5626  Anxiety New Zealand - 0800 ANXIETY (0800 269 4389) Supporting Families in Mental Illness - 0800 732 825
 If it is an emergency click here to find the number for your local crisis assessment team
 In a life-threatening situation call 111.  
