Woman shares Dollar Tree shopping experience and issues warning to other women after man allegedly lunged at her: ‘I’m not getting kidnapped today’

A woman says she made it out of a Dollar Tree unharmed after men she believed were targeting her followed her through the store and one allegedly lunged at her. According to a TikTok video, she thinks she was nearly kidnapped and wants other women to stay alert while shopping.

She says she was in the back of the store for car cleaning supplies when a man appeared with a basket of canned food, Gatorade and a cleaning bottle. She describes the items as random and “just weird stuff.” When she moved to the neighboring aisle, she says he peeked over and followed her down it. He did the same when she changed aisles again.

To avoid him, she says she walked to the opposite side of the store near the shampoo section, then returned to the cleaning aisle because she still needed her items. By her account, the man stood in the center of the store with a view down every aisle, scanning the store “like he had lost somebody.”

She says a second man lunged at her

A second man then came around the corner, she says, near an open door to a dark storage room. She claims he glanced inside and asked “is anybody in here,” then looked at her and lunged forward as if to grab her. She ran to the register, thinking “I’m not getting kidnapped today.” She adds that she would “rather be overreacting than get kidnapped.”

At the front, she asked a woman in line, “hey ma’am where are you parked,” and whether she could walk to her car with her. She says the first man then spoke to another customer, and she heard him tell that person, “I don’t know where that girl went but I’m going outside.” She claims he locked eyes with her before saying again that he was headed outside.

While she was checking out, she says another man stood behind her. When she asked whether he needed help, he told her he needed the bathroom key. She says she flagged down an employee, and the man walked off. By her count, about four men were involved, plus two more who switched lines when a second register opened.

A woman at another register then told her not to drive directly home and offered to walk her out, she says. Both women accompanied her to the parking lot, and she says their cars were parked near hers. She cautions viewers to be careful about whom they ask for help because “they have women in on these types of things” and to “have discernment.” She believes the men could have taken her if no one else had been in the store.

She urges viewers to stay off their phones while shopping and crossing parking lots, and to leave if their instincts warn them. She says she hopes the people involved are arrested. In a comment on the video, she states that she did go to the police. She claims officers told her to “find another dollar tree” and that they would “document what happened.” All details are based on her TikTok video and comment.

Other shoppers have shared similar accounts. One creator says men followed her around Target and suspected a trafficking attempt, while a Texas woman says a man followed her around Walmart late at night. The University of Central Arkansas Police Department advises shoppers to stay alert to their surroundings at all times. It also suggests asking for an escort to the vehicle when walking into a parking lot alone feels uneasy.

The department’s shopping tips recommend shopping with a companion, choosing well-lit parking spots with plenty of activity, and keeping keys in hand while walking to the car.

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