Child predator hunter faces felony charges after a livestreamed sting operation turned into a violent street brawl

The influencer Nicholas Attalla, known online as Niky Sal, is facing criminal charges after a confrontation with two men he accused of being child predators. The incident ended with him being stabbed and a young child caught in the chaos.

Attalla was arrested on charges including third-degree assault, criminal nuisance and endangering the welfare of a child, according to a report by People. He pleaded not guilty after being arraigned.

Attalla has built an online following by posing as minors and attempting to expose adults he believes are seeking sexual encounters with children. But one of those confrontations spiraled into a violent fight at a Tim Hortons in Jamestown, New York.

The predator sting quickly turned into a chaotic fight

Per WGRZ, Attalla had been posing as a 14-year-old girl while communicating with someone who claimed to be a 16-year-old boy. He went to the restaurant expecting to confront the person he believed was behind the account.

Police say Attalla then confronted James Morris and Eric Spencer. A Jamestown Police Department spokesperson said that Attalla had “threatened him [Morris] based solely off the phone conversation and his voice,” and apparently had not verified that Morris was the person he had been communicating with.

The confrontation became physical, with investigators determining that Morris stabbed Attalla during the fight. Morris was subsequently charged with first-degree assault, tampering with physical evidence and criminal possession of a weapon. He pleaded not guilty.

The fallout did not stop with the three men. Authorities also brought child-related charges after the fight caused the men to collide with a family and their 1-year-old child inside the restaurant. Spencer was also charged with second-degree criminal nuisance and endangering the welfare of a child.

Attalla suffered injuries in the stabbing and later received financial support through a GoFundMe campaign. The fundraiser had collected more than $12,000 toward his medical treatment at the time of the report.