Pakistani police on Tuesday said a 17-year-old TikTok star was shot dead by a man who had repeatedly contacted her online.
Sana Yousaf, who turned 17 last week and had more than a million followers across her social media accounts, was killed at her home in the capital Islamabad Monday evening.
“It was a gruesome and cold-blooded murder,” Rizvi added.
Yousaf had more than 800,000 followers on TikTok, which is wildly popular in Pakistan.
In the last video posted on her account, hours before her murder, she was seen cutting a cake for her birthday.
A 17-year-old TikTok star was shot dead by a man who had contacted her on the platform on multiple occasions, according to Pakistani police on Tuesday.
Sana Yousaf was murdered Monday night at her home in the capital, Islamabad. She turned 17 last week and had over a million followers on social media.
A 22-year-old has been taken into custody by police on suspicion of killing her. He allegedly loitered outside her house for hours.
“Repeated rejections were the case. Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi, the head of the Islamabad police department, stated at a press conference that the boy was attempting to contact her.
The murder was “gruesome and cold-blooded,” Rizvi continued.
With TikTok, which is extremely popular in Pakistan, Yousaf had over 800,000 followers. She shared videos of herself lip-syncing, skincare advice, and advertisements for cosmetics.
Hours before her murder, she was seen cutting a birthday cake in the final video that was uploaded to her account.
Some of the comments beneath the video said, “Rest in Peace” and “Justice for Sana.”.
In Pakistan, the Human Rights Commission reports that violence against women is widespread and that it is not unusual for women to be attacked after turning down marriage proposals.
Zahir Jaffer, a Pakistani-American boyfriend, decapitated 27-year-old Noor Mukadam in 2021 after she turned down his proposal of marriage, a decision that infuriated many. Jaffer received the death penalty.
In 2016, a betrayed ex-boyfriend stabbed Khadija Siddiqui 23 times, but she survived.
