A French influencer has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after authorities arrested him for stabbing unsuspecting bystanders with empty needles as part of a ‘prank’ for social media.
Prank videos are quite popular online, and while they’re quick to go viral, they’re often a source of criticism toward the prankster, too.
Several practical jokers have faced legal troubles for their shenanigans in the past, which they had the intent of filming and posting online for views… and now, another would-be prankster is behind bars due to his divisive content.
27-year-old French TikToker Amine Mojito is facing backlash and time behind bars for a ‘prank’ he pulled on strangers in public back in June, in which he would stab them with empty needles. Victims of the prank were understandably horrified, thinking they could have contracted any manner of infection from the needles.
A video compilation of his pranks has gone viral on social media, sparking outrage over the nature of the practical joke. Many expressed disgust at the physical harm he inflicted on the victims by actually poking them with a sharp object.
French TikToker gets 12 months in prison for needle prank
After being made aware of the ‘prank,’ French authorities arrested the TikToker, putting him in pre-trial detention at the Fleury-Mérogis prison for two months before his sentencing on October 3, 2025.
The French court found him guilty of “violence with a weapon not resulting in work incapacity,” sentencing him to 12 months in prison. However, six of those are suspended, meaning he may not have to serve them if he complies with certain conditions laid out by a judge.
On top of that, he was also fined €1,500 ($1,761 USD), and is banned from both owning or carrying a weapon for the next three years.
The TikToker spoke about the situation in court, arguing that he was merely imitating similar pranks he’d seen in Spain and Portugal without understanding the full scope of his actions.
“I had the very bad idea of doing these pranks by imitating what I saw on the internet, in Spain, [and] in Portugal. I didn’t think it could hurt people. That was my mistake, I didn’t think about others, I thought about myself,” he said, as reported by French outlet Libération.
His lawyer expressed gratitude for the sentencing, saying it “brings the debate back to more reasonable proportions after the initial media frenzy” and “restores a bit of balance between public order and the client’s fundamental rights.”
Initially, prosecutors asked for the TikToker to be placed under electronic monitoring for 15 months — but it looks like he’ll be spending half a year in jail, instead.
Amine Mojito is far from the first internet prankster to face legal action for their practical jokes; in July, influencer Heston James was arrested for posing as an employee at local businesses and filming chaotic scenes for content.
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