'They grabbed my phone': Detroit mayoral candidate on TikTok confrontation
Detroit mayoral candidate defends himself after TikTok video
Jonathan Barlow is one of many running for mayor in Detroit. His latest task is clearing the air about what happened in a video that has been gaining attention on social media.
DETROIT (FOX 2) - A Detroit mayoral candidate is getting a lot of attention online, and he says it's for all the wrong reasons.
The backstory:
Jonathan Barlow is one of many running for mayor in Detroit and his latest task is clearing the air about what happened in a video that has been gaining attention on social media.
Barlow says a few days ago he was at a late-night event near the Renaissance Center when he was approached by a group of women.
"Upon approaching me, the young lady, who has proven herself to be a real TikTok superstar, she definitely approached the situation in a very negative way, assuming that I wanted to engage her friends. That was not the case," he said.
What they're saying:
Barlow later said he was trying to move cars for people so they got home safely and claims the woman was chaotic, snatching his phone out of his hand.
"Thank God her friend gave it back to me. There was always this half-and-half balance: half of her friends saying that we’re trying to calm them down, half of them saying, ‘Listen, you know, we got you. Just go ahead and walk away,'" he said.
According to the mayoral candidate, he had 2 to 3 drinks but did not know the woman and says he feels like the victim.
"I’ve been a victim several times when they grabbed my phone, when they knocked the phone out of her hand, and multiple times when they had to stop her from engaging me and shoving the phone in my face."
Dig deeper:
Since the video was uploaded and gained attention, he says people have been harassing him online, but his focus is on winning the primary in August and building a better Detroit.
The other side:
FOX 2 spoke with the woman who posted the viral video over the phone on Wednesday. She says Barlow’s account of what happened is false.
The woman, who wants to remain anonymous, says it was the night of her birthday when she and her friends heard a man yelling.
"We hear a man yelling ‘hey, hey’ asking weird questions like ‘are we married?’ And I told him to leave us alone. And his reply was, ‘that’s no way to talk to your future mayor.’"
She says she made a snarky comment in return, "Our future mayor wouldn’t be driving a Ford Fusion." She says Barlow then got upset and started recording them.
"He’s recording us and telling us he’s going to make us go viral," the woman said. "Then I begin to record him. He approaches me and slaps the phone into my face. It busts my lip and falls directly to the ground. I pick my phone up. We continue to walk, and he’s still following us. Knocks my phone to the ground at least two more times."
She says there’s video of him following them and screaming at them. She then called the police. Since the incident occurred a few nights ago, she says she’s been harassed online.