Western Australia (WA) Police shut down a meet-and-greet with TikTok sensation Anna Paul in a Perth mall Sunday, after hundreds of fans reportedly swarmed the area and caused minor injuries.
Fans flocked to see the OnlyFans and TikTok star, but the turnout was much larger than expected, resulting in fans being crammed into the mall, according to Daily Mail. Upwards of 300 people reportedly “stormed” the mall, and paramedics were called to assist the fans who had collapsed during the surge.
Footage posted to social media showed attendees crammed shoulder-to-shoulder to catch a glimpse of the star, who is dubbed “Australia’s Kim Kardashian,” according to Daily Mail.
Anna Paul’s STAX pop-up canceled over safety concerns as hundreds gather to meet OnlyFans star https://t.co/CljQb7z6Qv
— ErwinPale (@KdadYwsf) August 28, 2022
WA Police intervened after tension arose among fans who attempted to jump the queue and get closer to Paul. Many attendees pushed forward against others in the crowd, causing those who were were in front of them to fall, the outlet noted.
The scene quickly became chaotic and unsafe, with eager fans chanting for Anna to come out as they continued to force their way through the thick crowd, according to Daily Mail. (RELATED: Travis Scott Pauses His Concert When Fans Engage In Dangerous Behavior)
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“Police requested the assistance of St John Ambulance after several people collapsed and required medical assistance,” the police reported, according to Daily Mail. “A significantly larger crowd than expected attended. Tensions among some parts of the crowd were noticed to increase with allegations of ‘queue jumping.'”
WA Police declared there was a “lack of appropriate security” due to the unexpected size of the crowd that came to see Paul.
This is crazy! Perth is out in force for a chance to meet TikTok star Anna Paul pic.twitter.com/znI6UjICrk
— Rangi Hirini (@rangihirini) August 28, 2022
Paul took to social media after the meet-and-greet to speak to her followers about the cancelation of her event, the outlet noted. “It became a huge safety hazard… thank you for being amazing… I am so so sorry we tried our very best to work with the police but it got too much,” Paul said on Instagram.
Paul initially grew famous by posting lip-syncing videos to TikTok, and then she shifted her focus to the subscription-based adult platform, OnlyFans. She has amassed 7 million followers on her social media outlets, and has also partnered with clothing store Stax to sell items from her personal collection that are not widely available for consumers.