A Florida man was arrested after attempting to remain inside a Walmart store overnight as part of a TikTok challenge he was live-streaming for views.
The incident occurred late on January 13 at a Walmart location in Englewood, Florida, after deputies were dispatched to the store following reports of a suspected burglary that involved a TikTok livestream.
According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded just after 11 pm to the Walmart store located at 2931 S. McCall Road after a caller reported a man still inside the building after closing.
Deputies find man live-streaming inside closed store
When deputies entered the store, they located the suspect, later identified as Isaac Matthew Hurley, in the dog bed section while actively live-streaming on TikTok.
Investigators determined that Hurley entered the store at approximately 10:15 pm and planned to stay inside overnight in an effort to complete a TikTok challenge. Deputies said Hurley told them he was attempting to earn money based on the number of views his livestream received.
During the investigation, deputies also found that Hurley had removed an iPhone charger from its packaging while inside the store. He was taken into custody at the scene and has been charged with Burglary of an Occupied Structure and Petit Theft for a phone charger he took off the shelf and removed from its packaging.
“I’m not sure why people buy into these social media challenges when they are clearly encouraging you to violate the law,” said Sheriff Bill Prummell. “From the ‘kicking in the front door’ challenge, to the destruction of public property thing a couple years ago, to now something as silly as this, young people especially are putting themselves in bad situations and paying the price for it.
“Why aren’t any of these challenges aimed at making the world better? Imagine mobilizing an entire generation to do positive things – the impact that could have. Instead, we are busy arresting people for making poor choices just to get views and likes. It’s a shame.”
This comes just days after a 19-year-old TikToker was arrested after sending the police and fire department to a fake emergency in an attempt to allegedly boost his TikTok engagement.
