Social media influencer Evan Johnson has been charged with domestic assault as TikTok star Kayla Malec, his ex-girlfriend, posted a series of viral videos detailing an “extremely abusive relationship” she was in recently, according to a report.
Johnson and Malec — who boasts 14.9 million TikTok followers — were romantically linked over the past year. This week, Malec posted multiple lengthy clips about an abusive ex whom she identified only as “Evan” to help “save others” from suffering similar abuse from their partners, according to People magazine.
“I will never be able to forget the scars left. i will never be the same girl i was before this. the same man who will look you in the eyes and say ‘i love you’ & then attempt to kill you is an experience i hope nobody ever has to live,” Malec scrawled on a note directing her fans to her two-hour YouTube tell-all titled “He doesn’t love you. pt.1.”
“I was silently being abused while posting my life online smiling. it’s true you can see it in the eyes,” she continued in her post, which does not explicitly identify who her abuser was other than giving a first name.
“I watch my old videos and see someone i NEVER want to see again. it drained my soul, and ripped apart the strong nature of myself i’ve had my entire life. i can’t put into words the abuse and what it did to me.”
Johnson, 20, was booked Monday in Sumner County, Tenn. for assault on a victim who was not identified and a parole violation, according to the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office. He made bail and was released the same day, People magazine reported.
Also that day, Malec, 20, posted a clip on TikTok of her crying, which she claimed was filmed Jan 15.
“i wanted to look at my eyes once I finally left. you really can see everything in the eyes,” she wrote in the caption. “this was the last time he got physical with me.”
Malec said in a second two-hour Youtube video she posted on Thursday titled “he doesn’t love you. part 2” that she decided to share her stories from the tumultuous relationship in order to help potential domestic abuse victims. She told her viewers to ditch their partner if they relate to her experiences.
“This happened to me to save others. if i saw this video 9 months ago it would have saved my life. i was put through this so i can save you,” she wrote.
She said in another video that she’s already heard from some of her millions of followers who’ve offered their support.
“I’ve been getting a lot of messages of people sharing their story and saying that I helped them,” said the TikToker. “I actually don’t have words for that, because that’s all I wanted this s— to do.”
Johnson didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment from People.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788.
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