A woman’s creepy encounter with a home invader captured while filming a TikTok video
“Welcome to the scariest moment of my life,” describes 25-year-old Hannah Viverette on an Instagram post recounting the terrifying moment she encountered a stalker who barged in her balcony door as she was filming a TikTok dance routine.
Hannah considers dancing as her form of creative outlet, meditation and her safe place, and admits she is fond of recording her movements on her phone.
One Sunday night in late November at her home in Hagerstown, Maryland, Hannah has just started recording herself when a few seconds into her dancing, she heard her second-floor balcony door open.
As she was about to get to the door to close it, she was startled upon realizing that there was a man who actually opened the door. (In her Instagram post, Hannah said he had seen his face almost daily in her apartment complex though they never talked. She also said that the “man has made a point to watch me and make many uncomfortable advances at me from a distance, for months now.”)
"When he first opened the door, I was prepared, for a few moments, to die," Hannah told NBC Washington.
All of these and the following exchange were captured on video. She initially posted the video on Facebook and Instagram, and then on TikTok, where it has now garnered more than nine million views and hundreds of thousands of reactions.
@hrviverette That moment when you’re recording yourself dancing and your stalker climbs your second story balcony to break in. #realshit #scariestmomentofmylife
♬ original sound - Hannah v.
A visibly shaken Hannah asked the man, who was out of the camera’s frame at this point, several times “Who are you?”
The man mumbled words and Hannah, who kept her composure asked again, “Please get off… please get out…”
But the man tried to strike a conversation. “Am I your friend?” The man asked. Hannah firmly said no and asked the man again to get out. The man was insistent and asked, “Are you sure?” Hannah said "yes" and immediately picked up her phone and ran towards the front door.
“I could see that he was not going to make an attempt to go out unless I removed myself from the situation, which is why I chose to run towards the door,” Hannah told BuzzFeed News.
“I literally had pepper spray three feet from me in that video, which you can’t see. And I still chose to do what I did, which was run and use my voice, be loud because I knew that was the only thing that would probably save my life.”
As seen on the video, she immediately knocked on her neighbor’s door as she filmed the man close the balcony door. Fortunately, her neighbor let her in and they called 911. The police reportedly arrived 40 minutes after the incident.
Upon the Hagerstown Police investigation, they identified the man as 36-year-old Angel Moises Rodriguez-Gomez, who was confirmed to live in close proximity from Hannah's home. Gomez was taken in the police headquarters for questioning. He was subsequently arrested and later on charged with third- and fourth-degree burglary, second-degree assault, and malicious destruction of property. He is currently out on bond and his court date is pending.
The Hagerstown Police Department released a statement on its Facebook page saying, “While there is a video of this incident posted on many social media platforms, the Hagerstown Police Department would like to reiterate that Rodriguez-Gomez is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.”
@hrviverette I’m still dancin. Sun’s still shining. But... My stalker still walks free. Not. Ok. #dance #ineedtomove #ASAP #fyp #bishopbriggs
♬ original sound - Hannah v.
Speaking to Buzzfeed, Hannah, who has filed a peace and order against Rodriguez-Gomez, shared that as the video is going viral, it serves some sort of justice. “He (Rodriguez-Gomez) will not be able to get away with what he’s done and that helps me feel a little bit better. However, he’s still a danger, he’s still walking freely, and that’s not okay.”
Hannah is reportedly undergoing therapy because of the incident. She also has since posted another video of her on TikTok dancing with the caption “I’m still dancing. Sun’s still shining. But my stalker still walks free. Not. Ok.” In the video, it can be seen that her balcony door where Rodriguez-Gomez entered now has new double locks. And near the door is a baseball bat already on stand by… just in case.
Banner image photos from Hannah Viverette's Instagram account
