Women express safety concerns over Michigan man's viral TikTok videos
A Livonia, Michigan, man's videos are going viral on TikTok, but it's not his face that is getting the views.
With over 1 million likes and 50,000 followers, TikTok user Charles Tenbroeck has been posting random interactions with people in public. However, some of the women in the videos say they are concerned because they had no idea that they were being recorded.
The women say Tenbroeck uses special glasses to record the interactions, and they have hired a lawyer because they want the videos to stop.
"Being this motherly figure to then being uncomfortable," said concerned TikTok viewer, Mac Macdermaid.
Macdermaid says she saw these videos and became concerned. She was never featured in one of Tenbroeck's videos, but she wanted to tell others that he was recording them without their consent.
"It was just a couple posts just warning people that this is happening locally in all these stores," said one woman, who did not want to be named.
The woman says she filed a police report with the Livonia police; however, no action has been taken.
Former federal prosecutor Rick Convertino said what this TikTok user is doing is not illegal.
"It's perfectly legal to videotape others in public settings. If there is not a reasonable expectation of privacy by the individual who is getting recorded, then it is perfectly legal to do so," said Convertino.
But some of the women say they were concerned for their safety if they spoke out against Tenbroeck.
"He's posted addresses, work history, he's posting pictures of people's children," one woman claimed.
Macdermaid showed CBS News Detroit a video that she says Tenbroeck made right before we spoke with her. She claims it showed a picture of her house and shares his opinions on her appearance.
"Tomorrow (Wednesday) I'll be going to the police department, I'll see what they say, and from here I'm just going to continue to do outreach to find other women who are victims," said Macdermaid.
CBS News Detroit reached out to Tenbroeck, who said, "I have been wanting to do social media for a long time, and I was in a job where it was not permissible."
He says his love for spreading joy through his videos cost him his job as a teacher.
"I was getting so many views that my employer was tipped off about it, so I resigned," said Tenbroeck.
He said he plans to do social media full-time despite the pushback he has received.
"A lot of women are labeling me a creep, a stalker. That's very hurtful to my family. My address, my family's information has been posted on Facebook pages," said Tenbroeck.
Convertino said the women could push for the money he is earning with the videos.