The man who followed a woman around the target area without her knowing

We live in an unsettling world full of creepy, inappropriate individuals. Over the years, we’ve heard countless stories of people being kidnapped, trafficked, and victims of more heinous crimes. We must remain vigilant and take the necessary measures to protect ourselves.

Unfortunately, no matter how careful we are, things can happen out of our hands. A man in a TikTok viral video followed a female around Target without her knowing. And while she’s OK, it’s a reminder of the importance of taking proper safety measures. Here’s the scoop.

In order to be a good neighbor, we must all take care of each other. Nina, a creator of a TikTok clip from June 29, 2023 (@ninasotom(), posted a video about her shopping experience at Target after she discovered a man following her.

“Target’s security literally catches everything,” Nina said. “I was just in there for an hour browsing and I ended up checking out with five items. And I think two of them had little tags on them.”

Nina continued: “So, the self-checkout worker was like, ‘Hey, do you need those tags taken off? I said, ‘Yeah, that would be great. And I pay as she’s getting them off and then she comes back and she was like, ‘You can’t leave. It’s not allowed to leave. The woman was adamant. ‘You have to sit here and you have to wait for me.’”

Nina said that when she felt panicky, she wished to return home in her sweaty gym clothing. She looked at her receipt to make sure the products she bought were still in her bag.

Interestingly, the self-checkout worker was helping another customer, but she turned around and told Nina, ‘You can’t leave.’”

Nina was so anxious that she believed she would get arrested. Even holding her receipt on her palms, she allowed Target’s concealed ceiling cameras to read it.

The self-checkout employee walked to another woman, who was not in Target’s uniform but wore an earpiece. Nina stated that she still had her receipt in her hands. The woman with an earpiece then went up to Nina.

“Hi I’m security,” the woman said to Nina as she was holding the receipt. The woman continued, “No ma’am, there’s been a man following you around for the last hour and he was taking pictures of you. I’m so sorry I didn’t catch it earlier. He would have been thrown out. But, by this time he is outside and he was waiting by his car.”

The woman who informed Nina of the incident walked Nina back to her vehicle and watched Nina get into it.

“She was so sweet and so apologetic for a situation that was not her fault at all. If anything, thank you,” Nina said. “This was all just very confusing and shocking for me. So I didn’t get her name. If you read this, then you know who I am. You’re dope and I love you and I would love to send you a fruit basket, flowers, or something.”

“This video is not supposed to be an OMG this happened to me, but more like, ‘Wow, that’s amazing that Target has those things set in place or maybe it was just that one worker. I don’t know, either way, dope,’” Nina said.

Nina expressed her gratitude to Target for the employee who helped her.

Most people hold their breath when they hear stories about TikTok’s retail experiences. So many have criticized retailers for their racial prejudice, discrimination and more. Nina was able to share that an employee actually watched out for her. TikTok’s users could exhale, and were grateful.

“That lady could have saved your life! Glad you’re OK,” one user shared.

“I was in Target a couple of weeks ago and there was a guy with a knife. Those employees were on that so fast and warned everyone to stay calm,” another person shared.

“Wow, I was so mad they were going to accuse you of something. The power of staying calm,” another person said.

We are aligned with TikTok users who are happy that Nina is OK. And if we have to say it until we’re blue in the face, please be aware of your surroundings and look out for each other. You just might save a person’s life.