A mother who is a TikTok true crime video poster explained her sufferings from her violent boyfriend she met during lockdown and how she eventually jailed him.
How They Met
Bekah Smith, 34, had met Karl Draper who is a MMA fighter through mutual friends online during the Covid-19 lockdown in early December 2020.
The victim of domestic abuse thought he was a ‘nice guy’ and the relationship progressed quickly as Draper moved into her flat – but she says the ‘coercive and controlling’ behaviour began soon after they started living together.
She revealed how her online channel – that narrates real-life crime stories – helped her realise how she was being abused by Draper.
She said she grew increasingly concerned after spotting some similarities between her situation and the domestic violence stories she was sharing on TikTok and realised she’s as well in one considering the extent of her treatment by her boyfriend.
When the Abuse Started
It all started after he moved into her home in Kirkby, Liverpool, in December 2020.
The Attacks She Suffered
He began to stop her going out, monitored her social media and even kicked her puppy in April 2021 until it ‘yelped in pain’, she says.
She fell pregnant in February 2022, then the relationship also turned physically violent. At a point, Draper strangled her until she thought she was would have a miscarriage.
He later attacked her shortly after she had given birth in April 2022, causing her C-section scar to burst open.
Posting online eventually gave her the courage to go to the police and she kept videos and recordings of the assaults to show them.
Court Ruling
The violent Draper pleaded guilty to five counts of ABH and one charge of coercive control at Liverpool Crown Court in February this year.
He was jailed for two years last month and given a five-year restraining order banning him from contacting her.
Going down the memory lane, she said: ‘I think my TikTok account saved my life. I always avoided doing domestic violence stories – I think I knew deep down it was because I was in one.
‘But making the videos really gave me the confidence to look at my own relationship.’
