The 16-year-old girl from Asheville, North Carolina, was reported missing by her parents on Tuesday last week, according to the Laurel County Sherrif’s Office in Kentucky.
Two days later, she was rescued after signaling with a hand gesture that has gone viral on TikTok, which represents domestic violence.
Media like The Huffington Post and CNN has also mentioned the case.
Used in emergencies
On Thursday last week, a motorist in Kentucky called the emergency number, to say that he saw a girl who was in distress in a vehicle on a highway, writes CNN.
– The caller was behind the vehicle and noticed a female passenger who made hand gestures known from the social platform TikTok, and who represents domestic violence, it says in a statement that was posted by the police on Friday.
The hand gesture is a one-handed sign you can use if you are in need, according to Canadian Women’s Foundation.
Those who use the signal hold their hand up with the palm facing out, then stick their thumb into the hand, and close their fingers to catch the thumb.
Arrested man
Police told CNN the person who reported it was lying behind the vehicle for about 11 kilometers.
Police managed to stop the car and rescue the teenager.
The kidnapper took the teenager from North Carolina to Ohio, where he has relatives, the police further inform. But they left Ohio when his relatives found out the teenager was a minor and reported missing.
– We do not know how long she did this to other motorists on the highway, hoping that someone would notice that she was in need. In the end, someone noticed it, the police say.
Police arrested the man on Thursday and charged him with kidnapping and possession of abusive material by minors.
Used by several
The hand signal that the teenager used was started in a campaign by the Canadian Women’s Foundation in the spring of 2020, and has since gone viral on both TikTok and Instagram Reels.
After it became known that the teenager was saved by using the TikTok trend, it has taken off on social media, and several have shared the signal on Twitter.
Instagram adventurer Gabby Petito is also said to have used the sign in a meeting with the police earlier this autumn, according to The Sun.
“Gabby Petito seemed to be signaling for help using the hand symbol for domestic violence when Moab police stopped her before she died,” the TikTok scout claimed.
Petito kom never back from the car holiday with his girlfriend, and the disappearance mystery attracted a lot of international attention.
The hand gesture is not intended to refer to any words, letters or ideas in sign language, the foundation writes on its website. The Canadian Association of the Deaf was involved before the launch of the campaign.
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