Cops are trying to identify the unruly baby-faced teens who trashed an NYPD car in Union Square on Friday when Twitch streamer Kai Cenat’s PS5 giveaway erupted in rioting — a melee that City Hall partly blamed on “outside agitators.”
Police on Sunday released photos of six of the eight troublemakers estimated at between 14 and 18 years old who kicked and jumped on a patrol car during the violent mayhem, which left at least seven people injured, authorities said.
The riot also led to 66 arrests after the mega-social-media influencer’s unsanctioned giveaway sparked the chaos and ended with him being charged with inciting a riot and unlawful assembly — then freed on a desk-appearance ticket.
“We are further looking into where there’s some even outside agitators,” Mayor Eric Adams said Saturday — while also blaming parents for not making sure their kids were not part of Friday’s violence.
“You don’t come to get free Game Boys and bring smoke bombs and bring M80s and bring other disrupted items,” Hizzoner said.
“We believe there were some outside influencers that may have attempted to aggravate the situation,” Adams said without elaborating.
A witness told The Post on Saturday that the popular Manhattan spot “looked like we were under war” when the thousands-strong crowd erupted in violence during the botched giveaway.
Cenat, 21, who has 20 million followers online, had announced he would hand out free PS5 video game consoles at the event. Officials said the influencer did not have the proper permit.
Police said that in the midst of the melee, the eight teens pounced on the NYPD vehicle around 3:30 p.m. before taking off.
The public relations company representing Cenat has issued an apology over the disturbing incident.
“We recognize that our audience and influence are growing and with that comes greater responsibility,” Erica Tucker, vice president of AMP Group, said in a statement.
“We are deeply disheartened by the outbreak of disorderly conduct that affected innocent people and businesses, and do not condone that behavior.”
On Saturday, Cenat posted images of the violence online, prompting rebukes from some social-media users.
“Keep the PlayStations to yourself next time,” wrote Instagram commenter mishmosh1127.
Adams praised the NYPD for handling “a very dangerous, volatile situation” and bringing it “to a level of resolve without any loss of life or substantial damage to property.”
Cops are asking anyone who can identify the alleged trouble-making teenagers who trashed the police car to contact NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS or online at https://crimestophers.nypdonline.org.