The Criminal Records Of TikTok's Most Popular Faces
The following article includes allegations of domestic abuse and assault.
There is an ironic quality to TikTok's ever-growing obsession with true crime, given that many creators on the video-sharing platform have become stories themselves. From trespassing to theft and even murder, a host of accusations haunts famous young TikTokers whose legacies are speckled with alleged criminal activity. While indulging in wrongdoing is definitely not a formula to TikTok success, even the negative publicity it induces has elevated many an internet personality to mainstream popularity. Cameron Herrin, for instance, gained followers by the millions on TikTok after being convicted of killing two people in a car crash, The Independent reported.
Simultaneously, in certain cases, law enforcement authorities have highlighted the relevance of these influencers' TikTok fame to the crime they were accused of. When officials in Los Angeles took action against two TikTokers — internet celebrity Bryce Hall being one half of the implicated pair — for breaking pandemic protocol regarding large gatherings, city attorney Mike Feuer pointedly invoked the duo's massive online presence. "If you have a combined 19 million followers on TikTok in the middle of a public health crisis, you should be modeling great behavior," he said, according to CNN.
Since every day is a good day for a reminder that social media only gives us half-baked chapters on people's lives, here are the real-life criminal records of TikTok's most popular faces.
Icy Wyatt was arrested on charges of assault
With over a million followers tuned into his lifestyle videos, Icy Wyatt enjoyed great popularity on TikTok until a run-in with the law threatened to jeopardize his digital career. The content creator, known as Wyatt Yeager in real life, was arrested in 2022 following incidents of assault that played out in Florida.
Yeager's reckless driving in Sunrise, Florida, led to a confrontation between him and two people in another vehicle, TMZ reported. The clash continued when the TikToker followed the car to a local Chick-fil-A and pulled a gun on them, according to reports. While there were no reports of bullets being fired, Yeager struck a member of the other party on the head with the firearm.
When police caught up with him, Yeager was reportedly aggressive with them and resisted arrest, even assaulting an officer in the process. He was charged on multiple counts, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Yeager was released on bond just the next day and soon took to his social media channels to defend himself, alleging aggression on the part of the people in the other car and police officers. His freedom was doomed to be short-lived since a year after his arrest and release, Yeager was apprehended in 2023 again. NBC 6 reported that a court in Broward County revoked his release bond, landing the TikToker in jail until his trial.
A case of domestic violence was brought against Taylor Frankie Paul
Renowned "MomTok" influencer Taylor Frankie Paul obtained a strike against her name after being accused in a domestic violence case that named her partner and child as victims. Early in 2023, police in Utah took Paul into custody following an altercation she got into with Dakota Mortensen at their home in Herriman, according to E! News.
Things reportedly heated up enough for Paul to begin physically attacking her boyfriend, even going so far as to throw metal furniture at him, per E! News. Mortensen, who sustained multiple bruises during the fight, apparently alerted his famous girlfriend to her 5-year-old daughter on the couch beside him, but Paul paid no heed.
According to police, video proof exists of objects flung by Paul also hitting her daughter. The influencer was arrested and several charges, including aggravated assault and child abuse, were brought against her. "Ms. Paul's status as a social media influencer has no bearing or impact on the investigation or outcome of this case," police stated in a news release at the time (via People). She was released the next day, and a majority of the charges — except for aggravated assault, to which Paul pleaded guilty — were dismissed (via ABC4). Though Mortensen had raised concerns about his safety at the time of the incident, he later defended his partner and began appearing in TikTok videos with her not long after.
Sneakers worn by ChozenWrld linked him to multiple crimes
In a case that was equal parts absurd and fascinating, influencer ChozenWrld found himself in handcuffs after a pair of shoes he wore in a TikTok video incriminated him in a multiple robbery case. Insider reported that the Michigan resident hit up four spots in his home state to carry out armed robberies over several months between 2021 and 2022, eventually being nabbed by the police following an anonymous tip. The intel led officials to Chozen Terrell-Hannah's social media accounts, where thousands of followers were tuned into his videos.
It was one of these videos, shared back in 2020, that showed him wearing white Nikes that the police identified as resembling the robber's. Terrell-Hannah's dyed hair was apparently also a giveaway, matching the unidentified criminal's description to his. Upon investigating Terrell-Hannah's home in Redford Township, the police found items consistent with their investigation, including the kicks that implicated him.
According to The Detroit News, geographical records obtained from the young TikToker's cellphone were also critical in tying him down to the string of crimes. Terrell-Hannah admitted to the robberies and was slapped with charges that could attract decades in prison.
From drug charges to brawls, Bryce Hall has a troubled history
Bryce Hall's reputation precedes him. Not only is the influencer a high-net-worth internet sensation, he is also renowned for offline exploits that often land him in trouble. 2020 was an especially eventful year for the influencer, who found himself navigating a multitude of accusations, including drug possession. Hall was briefly jailed in Texas over a misdemeanor charge for marijuana possession, and the day-long imprisonment apparently served as a wake-up call, he wrote in an essay published by People. "It dawned on me what a huge platform and responsibility I have — especially with my younger fans." A few months later, however, Hall was back in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Hall, whose online fan following runs in millions, was one of two influencers charged in Los Angeles for throwing parties that violated coronavirus pandemic restrictions. The case was eventually dismissed, but not without the mayor of LA himself taking stock of it. "The city has now disconnected utilities at this home to stop these parties that endanger our community," Eric Garcetti said, referring to the action taken against them (via CNN).
More trouble followed for Hall, who was filmed fighting outside restaurants around LA more than once that year. One such altercation at a nightclub even landed Hall in citizen's arrest in 2022, and in 2023, TMZ reported an incident where he threw punches at a security guard in Las Vegas that attracted more criticism.
Mahek Bukhari was imprisoned for murder
In what is one of the most twisted sagas to have come out of the annals of TikTok, popular fashion influencer Mahek Bukhari was involved in a sinister double murder plot that landed both her and her mother in jail. It was early 2022 when Bukhari's mother Ansreen Bukhari was blackmailed by a young lover she had taken outside her marriage. Beset by worry that explicit content on her lover Saqib Hussain's phone would be leaked, Ansreen turned to her daughter, who promised her in one text, "I'll soon get him jumped by guys and he won't know what day it is" (via BBC).
Things took a dark turn when a gang hired by the mother-daughter duo launched a car chase in Leicestershire that resulted in Hussain's car crashing and killing both him and a friend traveling with him. Hussain had made an emergency call in the moments before his death, alerting police to the fact that he was being pursued.
Bukhari and her mother were awarded prison sentences to the tune of three decades in September 2023. The Leicester Crown Court that convicted the pair strongly acknowledged the role of social media in the Bukhari double murder case, telling the influencer, "Your tawdry fame through your career as an influencer has made you entirely self-obsessed."
Prank videos landed Mizzy in trouble
The line between a prank and a crime is thin — and Bacari-Bronze O'Garro, or Mizzy to TikTok followers, egregiously toed it this year. Antics that brought Mizzy more notoriety than popularity landed the young content creator in trouble with the law, leading to his arrest twice in a span of a few days in 2023. While prank videos were a trademark of his social media, one that particularly inflamed things showed the London resident trespassing on someone's private property and sitting on their sofa uninvited. The Guardian reported that Mizzy was apprehended by the police, fined £365 (about $440), and ordered not to trespass or record people non-consensually.
"I wouldn't call it terrorizing, I would just call it more having fun," the young influencer said in his defense on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," adding that he apologized to his victim soon after entering the house. Apology couldn't hold Mizzy up for too long, though; his viral video was reported to be in possible breach of a notice he was issued the year before that prevented him from trespassing on private property.
A statement from the police said that Mizzy's home entry video was a "breach of a criminal behavior order," and he was re-arrested in May 2023. This was not the first strike against Mizzy, who was also arrested earlier in the year after he posted videos "that appear to show him harassing Jews," according to The Jewish Chronicle.
Hayes Grier was accused of robbery and assault
Noted influencer Hayes Grier found himself in a bit of a rough spot in 2021 when he was accused of assaulting a man in North Carolina, TMZ reported. For reasons not made public, Grier and a man named William Markolf got into a brawl that resulted in the latter reportedly being left with broken bones, brain damage, and loss of hearing (among other traumas). What's more, Grier allegedly also stole the man's $1,200 phone, according to warrants obtained by TMZ. The California resident, whose Vine fame precedes him, was briefly put behind bars in Mecklenburg County.
According to TMZ, fellow social media star Luke Foushee was also a part of the commotion and, like his pal, was arrested on multiple counts of felony. Fortunately for the two social media personalities, the charges against them were dropped in the months following the incident.
According to local news outlet WCNC, legal documents stated that "all parties were intoxicated and engaged in a mutual affray, some of which was captured on surveillance video." A case of robbery against Grier could not be established since Markolf's phone was recovered; furthermore, a witness claimed that it was Markolf who instigated the fight.
Indonesia arrested Lina Mukherjee under blasphemy laws
Indonesian influencer Lina Lutfiawati (or more commonly, Lina Mukherjee to her followers) never anticipated the backlash a food video shared by her online could have attracted in real time, prompting not just outrage but legal action against her.
She was visiting Bali and filming a video in 2023 when she took the precarious step of reciting an Islamic holy phrase before digging into a dish of pork — a food item forbidden in Islam. The TikTok video soon picked up steam online, drawing angry reactions from the general public as well as Muslim groups. As reported by CNN, Mukherjee's video also reached the high-level Indonesian Ulema Council, which condemned it for its supposedly blasphemous content.
"I know I was wrong but I really did not expect this punishment," Mukherjee said after a court in Sumatra convicted her for inciting religious hatred under the country's blasphemy laws. She was given a prison sentence of two years and a fine exceeding $16,000. Mukherjee's case invited comments from top human rights bodies, including Indonesia's Amnesty International chapter, a spokesperson for which said that the country's blasphemy laws challenged "freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief, freedom of opinion and expression" (via Reuters).
Luke Rockwell was involved in a sex abuse case
TikTok influencer and English teacher Luke Rockwell was arrested in September 2023 in Bangkok after being accused of indulging in a physical relationship with a teen girl, NBC News reported. The girl was 16 years old, and while 15 is determined as the age of consent in Thailand, the charges against Rockwell detailed that he took her away from her parents "for indecent purpose with the consent of such minor," according to the Royal Thai Police.
The girl's parents also accused the Floridian of passing on sexually transmitted infections to their daughter, something they discovered after she fell sick. Rockwell, who taught around multiple Christian schools in Bangkok and met the girl online, according to The Daily Mail, made bail soon after his arrest.
"My daughter had been messaging Teacher Luke for months using my phone. She deleted the messages after they chatted," the girl's mother told The Daily Mail. She further said, quoting her daughter, that Rockwell had used contraception during the initial phase of their relationship but after convincing the teen of his clean health record had ceased its use. The mother told NBC News that the TikToker had even filmed their sexual acts.
If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.
JinnKid was accused of murdering his wife and her friend
Entertaining thousands of followers across social media channels with his impression videos, JinnKid was once an internet sensation — until he wasn't. Ali Nassar Abulaban, as he is known off the internet, was put behind bars in 2021 after being accused of a double murder, in which his wife Ana Abulaban was one of the victims. CBS8 reported that the San Diego resident's marriage was on the rocks in the months leading up to the killing; Abulaban's wife had told him to leave their house, and the TikTok star was overcome by jealousy over her happening social life. "He wanted to know what she was doing every time of the day," Abulaban's cousin told the outlet.
According to The San Diego-Union Tribune, Abulaban's preoccupation with Ana's movements reached extreme levels when he went to the apartment in her absence one day in 2021 and bugged their 5-year-old daughter's iPad to listen in on his wife's conversations. It led him to discover his wife's friendship with one Rayburn Cardenas Barron the same day. Soon after, Ana and Barron were shot, and Abulaban was later arrested as a suspect.
The charges against him — including two counts of first-degree murder, which Abulaban pled not guilty to — could invite the death penalty if he is convicted.
An altercation in Dubai landed Sassy Trucker in trouble
Talk about a holiday gone wrong! Tierra Allen, aka Sassy Trucker on TikTok, couldn't possibly have predicted that she wouldn't be allowed to leave Dubai for months after first landing in the desert dreamland in April 2023. Accompanied by a friend who was behind the wheel, Allen had been cruising around Dubai when she found herself involved in a car accident. The vehicle in question had been hired from a car rental agency that, following the crash, allegedly refused to discharge Allen's personal items without a fee, The New York Post reported. This sparked an altercation between the agency and Allen, who was accused of raising her voice at them before it led to her detention.
The Texas influencer's arrest was challenged strongly by the advocacy group Detained in Dubai, which explained her situation as a "common rental car extortion scheme." Dubai police, meanwhile, highlighted the agency's accusations against Allen of "slandering and defaming an employee amidst a dispute over car rental fees" (via Associated Press).
The legal dispute over the shouting incident prevented Allen from returning to the United States for months, even after she cited medical issues. She countered the agency's claims by accusing them in turn of aggressive behavior. The U.S. State Department reportedly had an eye on the case, and in August, Allen was finally free to leave Dubai.
Egypt jailed Haneen Hossam in a human trafficking case
Haneen Hossam came upon more fame than she had probably gambled for when her home country of Egypt initiated legal proceedings against her for content they reportedly believed was immoral. In a move that was widely considered a clampdown on women's freedoms, Hossam and four other influencers were arrested in 2020 for sharing videos on social media that ignited controversy in Egypt, where conservative norms often hinder female autonomy. The charges against Hossam related to a TikTok video in which she called on women to work and earn with her, The Guardian reported. It attracted a jail sentence of two years, which was later overturned.
Unfortunately, the prosecution swung harder the next time around. Accusations of human trafficking were slapped against Hossam, as she was blamed for "using girls in acts contrary to the principles and values of Egyptian society with the aim of gaining material benefits" (via BBC).
The case gained extensive attention from the media and human rights bodies that brought into question the credibility of the charges against Hossam. The young TikToker, on her part, appealed straight to the President of Egypt for support in a broadly circulated video. A court in Cairo convicted Hossam in 2021 and gave her a prison sentence of 10 years, which was eventually reduced to three years.
Digitalprincxss was accused of child neglect
Two years before influencer Ruby Franke's child abuse case rocked social media, another popular internet personality had come to attention on similar charges. Marrissa Cloutier, or Digitalprincxss to her TikTok followers, found herself in police custody in 2021 after accusations of child neglect were brought against her.
According to Inside Edition, neighbors of Cloutier's had found her 5-year-old son distressed and wandering alone outside her home in Fort Myers, Florida, at night and informed the local police. The influencer — who is also popular on platforms like Twitch and OnlyFans — wasn't around when police arrived on the scene, a report by News-Press stated.
Upon her return, police questioned Cloutier, who said that she had been making a grocery run nearby, buying detergent, per Insider. However, according to the arrest report, police observed that Cloutier's embellished appearance was "not conducive to a late-night run to a convenience store" and noted the lack of a shopping receipt. The TikToker reportedly also lied about not having any local kin, despite various family members (including her mother) living not far from her house. Cloutier eventually confessed that she had met up with a friend after putting her son to bed. The child neglect charges against her were ultimately dropped due to a lack of sufficient evidence.
Cameron Herrin killed two people in a road accident
Cameron Herrin was just 18 when he was arrested for the deaths of a woman and her toddler following a car crash in 2018. The case gained widespread attention both on the internet and off it, particularly in Tampa where the fatal accident occurred. Tampa Bay Times reported that Herrin — accompanied by his brother and friend who were also arrested — was racing his new Mustang up to 102 miles per hour on Bayshore Boulevard when it rammed into Jessica Raubenolt. Pushing a stroller with her daughter in it, she had reportedly been attempting to cross the road when the vehicle rushed toward her.
"We hope something good will come of this foolish accident. That's what Jessie would want," Raubenolt's uncle told the press. Herrin was given a jail term of 24 years, with a court in Tampa rejecting the young convict's appeal for a reduced sentence in 2022.
Interestingly, Herrin's virtual popularity skyrocketed after his arrest, with fans appealing for him to be given another chance, as noted by The Independent. Support for Herrin flooded TikTok where he amassed millions of followers, many of whom expressed he was "too cute" to be put behind bars. While the authenticity of these spam-like social media campaigns was later disputed, Herrin's unprecedented fame even led his mother to question the "unhealthy obsession" with her son.