TikTok prankster who upset King's Guard horse, turned up at Downing Street ... trends now
The teenage TikTok joker who went viral after being arrested on Whitehall as he filmed a 'prank' on the King's Guard's horses insists his stunts are 'harmless' and simply an attempt to make some money from going viral.
MailOnline can reveal @ymusa18, the joker who was cuffed by armed Ministry of Defence police outside the Household Cavalry Museum on Thursday, is 17-year-old Musa Raza, from Ilford, east London.
Mr Raza says he aspires to be like Mizzy - the troublesome video-sharing lawbreaker who has since vowed to change his ways after being convicted of breaching court orders and stealing a mobile phone - but with 'harmless' jokes on the public.
Like other young TikTokers, he says he wants to reach the point where he can make money from his viral videos - which is only possible after accumulating a certain number of followers and views.
But his determination to make money has seen him take unnecessary risks: challenging armed police at Buckingham Palace and being stopped and searched outside Downing Street after he appeared to suggest he was carrying an explosive.
Musa Raza, 17, is the prankster who was carted off by armed police on Thursday after getting into an altercation as he filmed a 'prank' outside the Household Cavalry Museum
The teenager says his pranks, including those where he treats police vehicles as taxis (left) and pretends to fall asleep on strangers on the Elizabeth Line (right) are 'harmless'
He films himself in areas of tight security, such as outside Buckingham Palace and Downing Street (above)
But he has put himself and others at risk with other 'jokes', including this moment near No 10 when he was searched after appearing to suggest he was carrying an explosive in his bag
And his prank on Whitehall on Thursday, which saw irate members of the public tell him to 'f*** off' as they labelled him a 'rude b******', saw him strong-armed out of sight by police carrying deadly Colt Canada C8 carbine rifles.
Despite this, and other videos where he pretends to fall asleep on members of the public or pesters them for high-fives as he rides escalators on the London Underground, he refuses to believe he is putting himself, or others, in harm's way.
'It's just my TikTok,' he told MailOnline when asked why he would seek to deliberately draw the ire of armed police and the public.
'As you can see my TikToks are harmless. It's just little pranks.
'I plan before I do my videos. I know where the line is. I know the stuff I'll do will not get me shot or arrested.'
Videos on Mr Musa's current TikTok account, which he set up around a year ago, typically gather views in the tens of thousands.
He wants to build a large following of more than 10,000 followers and build large view counts on his videos so he can apply for payouts from TikTok and make money from his 'jokes' like his idol, the infamous tearaway Mizzy.
Ironically, the teenager's biggest hit to date wasn't even on his profile - but in viral YouTube footage that was later shared on X, formerly Twitter, of Mr Raza being told to 'f*** off' by irate members of the public.
The teen gatecrashed tourists' pictures with the horse on Whitehall as he filmed himself 'interviewing' the equine and its famously stoic rider, angering those trying to take pictures while visiting London.
As he was told to 'p*** off' by one bystander, Mr Raza got argumentative and was pushed back - prompting armed Ministry of Defence (MoD) police to run out from the museum and cart him off to the side.
A protesting Mr Raza could be heard saying: 'I didn't do s***, I didn't do s***, did you not see what happened, mate? I'm calm, I'm calm, no need to grab my neck bro, no need to grab my neck. I did not threaten no-one, you know.'
He was then handcuffed and led inside the compound, flashing a grin to the person filming for his TikTok. He now claims he was de-arrested off-camera.
'The police didn't have to get involved. They got involved because of a member of the public. I went up to him, we had an argument and he came at me,' he said.
'I was taken aside, behind the horses, they got my details, they called more officers and then they de-arrested me because they saw the clips and saw that there wasn't an actual offence.'
Approached for comment on Mr Raza's claims, the MoD declined to comment.
A clip from one of Musa Raza's videos where he claims he will scale the gates of Buckingham Palace after his video is 'liked' enough times. He has since backtracked on this
Musa went viral after he was filmed harassing members of the King's Guard outside the Household Cavalry Museum on Whitehall in London
