STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

The Terrifying Twerk: Victim Says the Incident Didn't End With the Dance

Washington Tharpe tells the rest of the story.

Washington Tharpe is finally speaking out about the twerking ambush that happened in early October.
"It is not about me being afraid or not afraid or embarrassed or not embarrassed," the 40-year-old teacher told ABC7. "I am speaking the truth. Maybe it will help someone else in the future."
Surveillance footage from a Washington, D.C., gas station showed that two women danced provocatively on him, while grabbing his private parts.

What the clip doesn’t show, Tharpe says, is that the incident didn’t end there: the women apparently followed him out of the store. As he tried to get into his car, the women tried to stop him from leaving and attempted to get in his vehicle. Although he was able to drive off and hide in a nearby car wash, the women continued to follow him.
"I thought, 'Oh, shoot, they're about to kill me,'" Tharpe said.
Although at first he didn't want to speak out about the sexual assault, he now sees himself as an advocate on behalf of male victims.
Ayanna Marie Knight was charged with sexual assault in the third degree on Nov. 10 for the incident.

(Photo: WJLA/ABC 7, Washington DC)

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.