Arrest of Gigi Ghanawi marks developments in Lebanon’s TikTok gang case: investigations, arrests, and allegations

The Tik Tok gang case, which has rocked Lebanon lately, has been ongoing for a week with investigations and arrests.

Even though Gigi Ghanawi’s name came out yesterday, further details have come to light.
At the break of dawn on Saturday, a security source reportedly apprehended Ghadir Ghanawi, also known as TikToker Gigi.

She reportedly belongs to the “TikTokers” gang, which made headlines in Lebanon last week when reports surfaced that the popular video app had lured scores of young people to private residences for rape and abuse.

Security forces have apprehended eleven out of seventeen suspects so far, and the arrest of “Gigi” has added to that total. According to reports, security forces used Gigi Ghanawi as bait to entice minors.

Past inmates include “a photographer whose work within the network was limited to filming attacks on minors, as well as a dentist who harassed some victims, a famous hairdresser on TikTok, as well as a clothing store owner, a money transfer shop owner, and a municipal employee who was a taxi driver transporting victims,” according to the palace.

Regarding the northern Lebanon lawyer whose fame has been growing among Lebanese citizens, the court is now seeking the Bar Association’s approval to press charges against him in anticipation of his eventual arrest.

The Swedish judges and police have begun working together to share information on Paul Al-Maoushi, or “Jay,” the leader of the group based in Sweden. They will then call him in for questioning.

Notably, last week, the matter surrounding this “TikTokers” gang came to a head when the Internal Security Forces revealed that several juveniles had informed the Public Prosecution that they had been victims of sexual assault, forced photography, drug use, and other forms of organized gang abuse.

At that point, authorities detained six suspects in Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and the North; three of them were young people with significant TikTok followings—Lebanese, Syrian, and Turkish.

The number of victims remains unclear, especially since many of the children themselves refuse to file claims and the relatives of some of the raped and harassed children are unaware of what happened to their children.

Apart from rape, other crimes or charges against the accused or persecuted include money laundering, harassment, and human trafficking.