Police union leaders praised “the greatest detectives in the world” after busting a 27-year-old content creator who goes by the name “Diaper Man,” marking the first arrest in what’s become a controversial snow day in New York City.
Multiple police unions on Thursday cheered the efforts of NYPD detectives in nabbing one of four suspects wanted in connection to Monday’s blizzard snowball fight in Washington Square Park, where now-viral video captured the pile-on against a number of uniformed officers.
Gusmane Coulibaly, the aforementioned content creator, was arrested at his home in the Bronx for allegedly assaulting officers. His brother insists throwing the snowballs was harmless.
“To be honest, a snow fight is a snow fight,” Coulibaly’s brother said. “People were there to have fun.”
“How could the snow injure you?”
According to the NYPD, Coulibaly had been arrested a few weeks before the snowball incident for attempted robbery. But his brother alleges the robbery was a recorded prank involving phony demands for a stranger to hand over cash. He said Coulibaly, under the YouTube account Life of Diaper, shoots videos of manufactured confrontations, including with police.
Gov. Kathy Hochul was asked Thursday if she thought criminal charges were appropriate.
“Our police officers put themselves in harms way every day and there is no circumstance where it’s OK to throw anything at a police officer. So that is appropriate,” the governor said.
Video taken of the incident in question appears to show people deliberately throwing snowballs at the heads of officers walking by. Some NYPD cops ended up with cuts on their faces, officials said, and were taken to a hospital for treatment. All of those officers are expected to be OK.
Police officials have remained steadfast in their claims that the actions of those throwing the snowballs were violent, an opinion that appears to stand in contrast with Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The mayor acknowledged that the snowball fight got out of hand and insisted police officers must be treated with respect.
“I’m not going to be banning snowball fights or organized snowball fights,” Mamdani said Wednesday. “And I continue to believe that what we are seeing in this response to this winter blizzard from the city workers as a whole, and that includes the hard-working men and women of the NYPD, is part of why the city’s getting back on its feet.”
The Police Benevolent Association — which had immediately condemned the behavior seen in the video, calling it “outrageous” and “unacceptable” — was quick to jump on news of the arrest Thursday.
“A 27-year-old with a recent attempted robbery arrest is not a ‘kid.’ This arrest sends a clear message that assaults on police officers cannot and will not be minimized or tolerated,” said PBA President Patrick Hendry, calling the incident a “shameful attack.”
The president of the detectives union shared a statement Thursday putting pressure of District Attorney Alvin Bragg to bring charges against Coulibaly.
“The greatest detectives in the world found this criminal — with a record of multiple arrests — and now it’s up to DA to put this felon in jail where he belongs,” Scott Munro, president of the union, said.
