A TikTok user caught a man on video allegedly snapping pictures of her and a 16-year-old friend in a subway car.
Her confrontation with the man has gone viral with nearly 3 million views.
In the original video, a man in an orange shirt is seated directly across from user Juanita (@juanita.dgaf) on a subway car. As she begins to record him, his phone is aimed directly at her and begins to flash.
@juanita.dgaf ♬ Lawsy Hotel – lawsy
In a second video, the TikToker addresses the entire train asking why no one stepped up to protect them.
“A HOMELESS MAN stepped in to defend us.. look at all the men just staring.. its PATHETIC!!” she wrote in the caption.
@juanita.dgaf Replying to @x666._.999x ♬ original sound – Juanita J
Several viewers suggested that the man could have accidentally turned on his flashlight or used LED flash alerts for notifications.
“Imagine he just turn the flashlight by accident,” one user wrote.
“Some phones flash when they get a text or something…” another added.
However, users came to the defense of Juanita as some people tried to explain away the man’s behavior.
“‘It’s just a message’ dude had his camera pointed right at her, people don’t usually check their phone with it in the air like that,” one user wrote.
“They didnt even try to hide it…flash on, angle, everything,” another said.
“Yall talm bout it’s a accident how it’s a accident he purposefully is aiming the camera at them,” a third claimed.
Other people commented that they’ve unfortunately had similar subway picture incidents happen to them in the past, but they didn’t have the confidence to speak up. The TikToker explained in the comments she was primarily concerned for her friend.
“If it was only me I probably would’ve kept quiet but I had to say something bc a minor was involved in those pictures,” she wrote.
The Daily Dot reached out to Juanita via Instagram message.
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