Philadelphia

“I regret it.” Social media influencer Meatball talks to NBC10 about livestreaming looting and arrest

21-year-old Dayjia Blackwell was bailed out of jail by her mother after she was charged with conspiracy, burglary and riot among other felonies

NBC Universal, Inc.

The social media influencer known as "Meatball" is back home after she was arrested and accused of instigating some of Tuesday night's looting in Philadelphia.

21-year-old Dayjia Blackwell was bailed out of jail by her mother early Thursday morning and she told NBC10 that she never wants to go back to jail.

"I just prefer, you know, never loot again, stay out of trouble, never go to jail," she said.

Blackwell is one of the dozens of people arrested following Tuesday night's looting. She has garnered attention in the last 48 hours because of her social media livestream that captured the crime spree.

As the chaos unfolded across the city, Blackwell had livestreamed much of it, up until her arrest, to her more than 180,000 followers.

Police in Philadelphia and the city's District Attorney's office say that Blackwell was encouraging others to engage in the looting and other criminal activity.

In the videos she posted to her Instagram stories, she appeared to be cheering on the crowd robbing the Apple store in Center City while shouting "free iPhones." She could also be seen walking with the crowd as they moved to different stores and drove to parts of the city.

She was charged with burglary, conspiracy and rioting among other felony charges.

Blackwell's mother did not want her to speak with reporters and cut the conversation short by honking her car horn repeatedly.

She took to her social media to thank her followers for their support and said this experience has left her scared and traumatized.

Blackwell is due back in court on October 17.

Contact Us