A man has been charged in Pakistan over the killing of 17-year-old TikTok star Sana Yousaf who had repeatedly rejected his advances.
Ms Yousaf’s murder in June drew widespread condemnation but also some comments appearing to blame her, igniting a fierce debate about women on social media.
Umar Hayat, 22, was arrested and confessed to the murder soon after her death, but pleaded not guilty in Islamabad’s district court on Saturday.
“All the allegations made against me are baseless and false,” the accused told the judge.
Authorities said at the time of his arrest that they believed Mr Hayat murdered Ms Yousaf at her home in Islamabad after she rejected what they called his “offers of friendship”. He allegedly also repeatedly tried, and failed, to meet her.
They say he broke into her home, fired two shots, stole her phone and fled.
Hayat, the son of a former public servant and a TikToker himself, was arrested soon after.
Ms Yousaf already had a wide following in Pakistan, with half a million fans on Instagram before her death. Her TikTok account gained hundreds of thousands of followers overnight, and now stands at more than two million.
Condolences flooded her social media pages, where she shared videos of her favourite cafes, skincare products, and traditional outfits.
Her last video on Instagram showed her surrounded by balloons and cutting a cake for her birthday.
TikTok is very popular in Pakistan, with many women finding both an audience and income on the app, which is rare in a country where fewer than a quarter of women participate in the formal economy.