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*The following article contains discussion of sexual assault.
People on social media are horrified after a viral video seems to have caught a potential kidnapper following a young girl around a Walmart.
The video was filmed by a mom who noticed a "weirdo" who seemed to be tracking her daughter all over the store while they shopped.
Once the man was identified, the woman looked him up, and he turned out to be a registered sex offender. She's now using the incident to warn other parents about the dangers of human trafficking.
See her TikTok about the experience below.
The mother, who goes by @dd_escapades on TikTok, began her video in the shoe aisle of the Walmart, zooming in on the man.
She described how he seemed to be tracking them.
“I don’t know him, and he’s following me and recording me."
A few moments later, when she turned her camera back to the place where the man had been standing, he had left. The mother said she thinks he left because she was filming him.
“Now he’s gone, after he realized I started recording him."
The woman then found a Walmart employee and showed them her footage, and the management had him removed from the store.
Later, the woman posted a follow-up TikTok sharing what she had found out about the man.
She said in her video:
“He has been identified. He is a registered sex offender, class 1. … He was arrested for molestation and rape."
The woman also revealed she had shared both her footage and the Walmart's security footage with police.
In a second follow-up video, she said she intends to press charges against the man.
On TikTok, many people were deeply disturbed by @dd_escapades' experience and all too many commenters had similar stories of their own to share.
@felicityjenkinss/TikTok
@thatscute76/TikTok
@annabarney2/TikTok
@kingbree_/TikTok
@deepsearetro/TikTok
@bridgelynnx2312/TikTok
@southern_gemini25/TikTok
@shoutyourcause/TikTok
@isalb21/TikTok
In her final follow-up video, @dd_escapades revealed that the police she spoke with informed her the man who followed her and her daughter had just finished his parole days before the incident. She has filed stalking charges against the man.
***
If you or someone you know experienced sexual assault, help is out there. You can reach the RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 1-800-656-4673, use their Live Chat tool: https://www.rainn.org/get-help, or visit the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
In Canada, help is available through the Ending Violence Association of Canada website.
International resources can be found through the Rape Crisis Network Europe website.