20 year old TikTok personality Terryon Thomas, also widely known as ‘Mr. Prada’, was arrested and charged with obstruction of justice and the second-degree murder of his therapist, William Nicholas Abraham. Baton Rouge Police say he fled from them in Abraham’s car to Dallas, Texas. Thomas had a warrant issued for his arrest by the Baton Rouge Police Department on suspicion of aggravated criminal damage to property, resisting an officer, and unauthorized use of a vehicle.
Thomas, who is from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was arrested in Dallas, Texas on Tuesday, October 1, 2024. At that time, he was accused of killing Abraham, who was found dead on the side of a highway near Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, on Sunday, September 29th. Abraham, age 69, died as a result of blunt-force trauma.
The East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office states they found blood and weapons in Thomas’ home, according to an affidavit for an arrest warrant. The affidavit also says that Abraham was seen on surveillance footage entering Thomas’ apartment the day his body was discovered. Witnesses say that they’ve seen Thomas dragging a tarp and loading it into Abraham’s car.
Thomas, with the amount of 4 million followers on the platform TikTok, has been around since late 2022. The 20 year old had gained his large following through relatable TikTok posts. As of recently, Thomas’ TikTok followers have expressed concern over his well-being after making a post hinting at loneliness, and changing his appearance to where his head and eyebrows are shaved.
On October 8th, 2024, Thomas’ charge of second-degree murder was upgraded to first-degree murder. This had changed because Louisiana law allows the more serious first-degree murder charge when “the offender has the specific intent to kill or to inflict great bodily harm upon a victim…”
Thomas’ case is still under investigation as of October 8th, 2024, including the relationship between him and Abraham, as well as his motive for the killing.
I interviewed two students for their opinion on this topic – one that I knew was a fan of Mr. Prada and his content, and one that I knew wasn’t.
Student Jenelle, a former fan of Mr. Prada says,
“Yes, I have been a fan of his content because his content was funny and relatable. I do think that this has changed my perspective of people online because you don’t know who that person could be behind the screen.”
Another student that I interviewed, that wished to stay anonymous, who is not familiar with Mr. Prada says,
“I would not have expected that someone like him would do something like that because looking at his photos and videos, he looks just like a normal, average person. I think mental illness could be a reason for what he did. The fact that he goes to a therapist most likely means that he has some underlying issues, possibly connected to his popularity on TikTok and his big exposure to social media.”