James Charles denies "grooming" 16 year old boy on Snapchat

1 March 2021, 11:24

James Charles responds to Trisha Paytas over "child groomer" comments

By Jazmin Duribe

James says the allegations are "completely false".

James Charles has denied grooming a 16-year-old boy following multiple allegations.

On Friday (Feb 26), a TikTok user named Isaiyah, shared a video accusing the YouTuber of sending him explicit messages and photos on Snapchat. Last month, Isaiyah was reportedly added on Snapchat by James, after he had initially messaged him on the platform. The conversation became "very sexual" which made him feel uncomfortable. "I was getting really uncomfortable so I told him my age. I told him I'm 16. Meanwhile he's 21. He's a grown man," Isaiyah said in the video, which has now been deleted.

James said the claims were "completely false" in a statement on Twitter. "There's a video going around about me on TikTok and Twitter of a guy calling me a groomer and I want to address it right away," he explained. "The accusation that I have groomed this person is completely false." James went on to explain how he added Isaiyah on Snapchat, who proceeded to say he loved him and send him explicit photos. He admitted to exchanging photos with him, but at the time James believed he was 18.

READ MORE: James Charles accused of "mocking pregnancy" after fake baby bump photoshoot

He added: "In this excitement of meeting someone I thought could be potentially great, I didn't ask for a copy of his ID or passport. It's now clear, based on the video he uploaded, he was taking photos of me with another device, and had an ulterior motive from the beginning."

James claims that after learning Isaiyah was 16 he apologised for flirting with him and cut contact. He continued: "After false allegations like this in the past, I would never knowingly engage with anyone underage and put my life on the line for a few Snapchats. Because of situations like this, instead of taking someone's word for it, I now will ask to see the ID or passport of every guy I have a conversation with."

Isaiyah responded to James' statement on Twitter, tweeting: "James we both know I blocked you, you never asked for my age. After I told you I was 16 you proceeded to ask me for nudes and said it didn’t matter. You called me hot and said 'I wish the timeline could speed up so you can be 18.'"

Since the initial allegation several other teens have come forwards with similar stories. He responded on Twitter after someone commented that he couldn't "NotesApp his way out of this one".

"I'm not trying to get out of anything," he began. "No matter what happened, it was unacceptable, embarrassing and I should have taken the extra steps to research the person I was talking to. There is no excuse. Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. This is on me."