TikTok prankster Heston James arrested for 13 criminal charges

Written by Jack Crago

Heston James a social media prankster arrested and facing 9 years for 13 criminal charges. He was famous on TikTok for his Backup screamer prank, and he would often impersonate store employees; which is a large reason why he was arrested. The young 21 year old was arrested in July and was facing 9 years, but is on temporary bail. 

Heston Cobb (Heston James) mugshot

He was charged with burglary, illegally impersonating, disorderly conduct, and criminal trespassing for conducting disruptive prank videos at Arizona businesses. He was charged with these crimes after he and his crew posted a video on it.  

Many local establishments have reported him and his crew causing chaos, quoted from Tempe PD news “These men began seriously disrupting their businesses by entering employee-only areas and refusing to leave when asked.” 

Heston James impersonating a target employee

Most often he would show up to chain stores with him and his group, usually consisting of around 6 people; then tell the employees that corporate sent them. It usually ended up with him getting kicked out or him hiding in the back of the store, which is a restricted area.

His TikTok account was under review after the reports of his shenanigans leading to his 1.6 million follower profile being deleted. He was later arrested at his home on July 24th 2025, for his disruptive behavior in the Tempe area. As we know today only he was arrested from his crew as he was likely the one conducting the pranks.

As of today popular streamer Adin Ross has paid Heston's bail, he is not completely free but is for the time being. Adin has also set him up with lawyers, and vows to help this young man for his harsh charges, Adin ross stated “Guys, here’s my thing, there's r*pists and f***ing people that deserve to go to jail for a long time and they get out in less than him. You know what I'm trying to say? Like, 9 years for f***ing TikTok, he’s a kid!”  Heston is still facing 9 years but now has a much better chance at overcoming the charges.