Amy Bradley, the co-founder of Sydney jewellery brand Luna Rae, has slammed bullying on TikTok as “out of control” after her now-viral video about an unnamed influencer unleashed a firestorm of controversy.
ICYMI, Bradley set the internet alight earlier this week when she alleged in a viral TikTok that a mystery Aussie influencer had stolen a $360 necklace from her boutique.
Bradley did not name the alleged thief, but the TikTok — which has since clocked almost three million views — ignited a heated debate on social media as onlookers raced to uncover the influencer’s identity and questioned whether the entire thing was a PR stunt.
Now, Bradley has hit back at the criticism she has received for sharing the video, saying the controversy “spun out of control” and that she began fearing for her safety due to relentless trolling.
“We were deemed to be lying because we wouldn’t give up [the influencer’s] name, we don’t want her to be bullied either … it’s insane, the haters rally together to attack people, they get a kick out of it and don’t care about anything else,” Bradley told the Daily Telegraph.
“People were saying things that were getting scary … like are people actually going to come to our office, try and find me, vandalise the place?” she added.
The Daily Telegraph reported that it had seen documents that confirmed the ordeal actually took place, despite accusations Bradley had fabricated the controversy for engagement.
Bradley said the furore started affecting her family, and called on TikTok to provide “more help” for users who’ve found themselves at the centre of viral controversies.
“TikTok has a responsibility to keep this in control, why are people allowed to be out there badmouthing us, fuelling more hate…TikTok needs to have an official channel to help when things get out of control, it can’t just be to let the comments keep coming,” Bradley said.
While she stopped short of naming the influencer, Bradley did reveal that the person is perhaps not as well-known as TikTok users presumed her to be.
“This person happened to be an influencer who has been on TV, it made people think she’s some massive celebrity when she wasn’t,” Bradley said.
She went on to say that Luna Rae had lodged a complaint over the alleged theft to Fair Trading, and revealed she has still not heard back from the influencer who apparently flaunted the necklace on social media.
Bradley also apologised to influencers like Abbie Chatfield and Jessika Power, who were wrongfully accused of the theft by scores of social media users who were trying to identify the culprit.
“We sincerely apologised, and they were all so understanding and supportive and gave us advice on how to handle the vile stuff. … they’ve really lifted us up,” Bradley said.
It comes days after Bradley claimed the influencer was issued a refund for the necklace on the basis that it never arrived, yet continued to wear it on social media.
Chatfield weighed in on the drama with a response video on TikTok, and hopefully Bradley’s more recent comments can put to bed all the trolling from social media users.
Lead images: TikTok
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