A social media blogger who garnered over 1 million followers on Instagram decided to take his entrepreneurial game to the next level by launching a website. The only problem was the domain name he wanted was already taken.
As a student at Iowa State University in 2015, Rossi Lorathio Adams operated a wildly popular Instagram account, State Snaps, that garnered over 1.5 million followers.
The account showcased party pictures of scantily-dressed female students drinking and having wholesome clean fun. The State Snaps account had its own catchphrase: “Do it for State!”
The account was so popular that Iowa State University officials objected to the content.
When Adams graduated in 2017, he decided to take his success as a popular Instagram blogger to the next level by launching his own website.
Unfortunately the domain name doit4state.com was already taken by another entrepreneur who was smart enough to register it first.
Adams contacted the domain owner through the website’s registrar, GoDaddy.com, and offered cash to turn over the rights. But the domain owner, identified only as E.D. in court records, refused to give Adams the domain.
Over the next two years, Adams, 26, made other efforts to convince E.D. to give him the domain name. He balked when E.D. offered to turn over the domain name for $20,000.
Police say Adams decided to get aggressive with E.D. and tracked him to his home in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Adams had no trouble finding the address because E.D. listed his address publicly on GoDaddy.com, rather than hide his address behind a proxy.
Court records show Adams showed up at the house wearing a State Snaps t-shirt. When E.D.’s brother answered the front door, Adams took an aggressive stance and punched his fist into his other hand.
“I’m here for the name. Whatever it takes,” Adams said. I’m not leaving without it.”
Police say Adams left without the domain name.
A month later, Adams tried again – this time he hired muscle – his cousin, Sherman Hopkins, Jr., a felon who was living at a homeless shelter.
Police say Hopkins broke into E.D.’s home, forced his way into E.D.’s upstairs bedroom, there was a tussle for the gun, and shots were fired.
E.D. was hit in the leg but he managed to wrestle the gun away from the intruder and shot him multiple times in the chest.
Hopkins survived his injuries, and Adams was in custody a month later.
Last week a jury found Adams guilty on all counts related to the incident. He now faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.
Doit4state.com is still active online, and someone is posting wholesome, clean pictures and videos of Iowa State girls gone wild.
