American police in Kentucky were able to rescue a teenager who had been kidnapped inside a home in North Carolina after she used a hand gesture she learned from the TikTok app to express incidents of violence. According to CNN, the girl's parents reported her missing on Tuesday. On Thursday, a driver in Kentucky contacted the police to report seeing a girl who seemed to be in distress in a car on the highway. The informant said he was driving behind the car containing the girl when he noticed she was making well-known hand gestures on TikTok signifying that she was experiencing a violent incident or needed help.
The gesture involves opening the palm of the hand, tucking the thumb into it, and then closing the other fingers over the thumb. The informant followed the car for 7 miles while on the phone with the police, who were eventually able to stop the vehicle and rescue the girl. Police stated that the kidnapper initially held the teenager at a relative's house in Ohio, but they left the state after his relatives discovered she was a minor and had been reported missing. The man was arrested and charged with kidnapping, unlawful detention, and attempted sexual assault of a minor.
