The founder of a social media company faces 20 years in prison for orchestrating the home break-in and subsequent shooting of an Internet domain owner.
According to reports, Rossi Lorathio Adams II founded a social media company “State Snaps” in 2015. The company, which operates on Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, is described as containing violent, crude and often nude images of young people.
The catchphrase associated with uploaded videos is “do it for the state” and to capitalize off the growing followers, Adams, 26, tried to purchase the domain name from a Cedar Rapids resident. He couldn’t make the final sale.
“Between 2015 and 2017, Adams repeatedly tried to obtain ‘doitforstate.com,’ but the owner of the domain would not sell it. Adams also threatened one of the domain owner’s friends with gun emojis after the friend used the domain to promote concerts,” court records show.
Growing tired of playing “nice,” in June 2017, Adams reportedly told his cousin Sherman Hopkins Jr to break into the victim’s home and force the sale. Hopkins wore pantyhose on his head, a hat and glasses to cover his eyes. He had a gun and a Taser when he broke into the home to demand the domain name.
After forcing the owner to the computer, Hopkins reportedly held the weapon to his head. “Fearing for his life, the victim quickly turned to move the gun away from his head. The victim then managed to gain control of the gun,” court records show.
Hopkins was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year. Now, Adams faces a similar fate, with a 20-year maximum sentence, a $250,000 fine, and three years supervision.
