Police referred a group of pranksters to prosecutors on Monday over a stunt in which they placed a bed with a YouTuber on top in the middle of Tokyo's famed Shibuya scramble crossing as pedestrians used it to cross the intersection.
The six men and one woman in their 20s and 30s have admitted to being involved, saying they "wanted to create a fun video that would attract viewers," police said.
In the video, four men rush to place the bed and YouTuber in the middle of the busy crossing just as the lights turn green for pedestrians at around 4:30 p.m. on March 27.
A mass of people then stop to take pictures and videos of the YouTuber, a Tokyoite, who pretends to sleep. The men then lift up the bed with the YouTuber still on top and hurry to safety before the light turns red.
The video, which was uploaded to the site in late March, was taken by a man and a woman in their 30s at the YouTuber's request, authorities said.
The police were first alerted to the video by viewers who considered the prank to be dangerous.
Japan has seen a spate of incidents involving YouTubers causing trouble as they increasingly take more risks in attempts to gain more followers.
