NetflixNetflix’s Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing has placed renewed focus on the allegations against Piper Rockelle’s momager Tiffany Smith, including the claim that she interacted with an adult male who went by “Megan” online. Warning: some may find this content distressing.
Earlier this year, Hulu’s Devil in the Family placed renewed focus on the issue of minors on social media by examining the crimes of Ruby Franke. Now, it’s in the spotlight once more thanks to Bad Influence.
The three-part docu-series details Piper Rockelle and The Squad, a group of child influencers who racked up billions of views and millions of dollars online. However, behind the scenes, it was far from the fun atmosphere they presented online.
Piper’s mother Tiffany Smith is accused of exploitation, manipulation, and sexual abuse. One of the more shocking claims is that Tiffany put Piper in risky situations and even interacted with a potential child predator.
Who is “Megan” in Bad Influence?
Netflix“Megan” is the alias used by an adult male fan of Piper Rockelle’s who used to send her presents. Smith is accused of using this to her advantage, even sending him pictures of her 10-year-old daughter in exchange for expensive gifts.
In Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing, Smith’s sister-in-law, Ashley Rock Smith, recalls seeing Piper surrounded by boxes of gifts.
“I remember seeing a pink flamingo, stuffed animals, and a lot of squishes. All of this stuff was given to them by a fan. His name was Megan,” she says.
Former Squad member Sophie Fergi adds, “I never got to see what Megan looked like. I thought Megan was a girl fan for a while, until I found out that he was an older male.”
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Disturbing screenshots show interactions with “Megan” on social media, including an Instagram post of Piper holding a banana squishy. As well as tagging him in the caption, it states, “Say hello to my little friend ‘The Banana King’, thank you soooooo much.”
Under one of Gavin Magnus’ posts, “Megan” commented, “Gavin when are you and Piper posting swimsuit photos.”
NetflixSophie’s mother, Heather Nichole, who previously worked as The Squad’s stylist, says, “Megan poses as a girl online who’s a Piper Rockelle fan, has all the pictures of Piper.
“Tiffany said, ‘He likes pictures of Piper. He’s her stalker. You can get stuff too if you send him pictures. It’s nothing bad. It’s just extra pictures from photo shoots. But he’s a pervert.’ Like, she knew he was a pervert.”
“Just by flirting and sending him photos, Tiffany got herself a Gucci bag from Megan. Piper got a Gucci bag,” she continues.
“All these outlandish gifts. Brand-new computers, brand-new cameras, camera lenses, mics, iPhones if she needed an iPhone. She got hoverboards. Anything that you could think of that Piper wanted, she got from Megan.”
When “Megan” tried to reach out to Sophie, Heather says she blocked him right away.
Corinne Joy, another former Squad member, claims Tiffany would even allow this man to interact with Piper on the phone.
“Regularly, Tiffany would be like, ‘Piper, Megan’s on the phone.’ And then Piper would go over and be like, ‘Hi, Megan,’” she says.
What makes this even more shocking is that “Megan” is allegedly just one of multiple adult men Tiffany communicated with.
Steevy Areeco, Corinne’s mother, recalls a time when Corinne came home and asked her “why old men like to smell underwear.”
This question arose after Corinne reportedly saw Tiffany posting Piper’s underwear. When Steevy confronted Piper’s mom, she allegedly replied, “Stop being so dramatic.”
Tiffany Smith faces backlash from Netflix viewers
The Netflix docu-series has left viewers shocked, with many criticizing Tiffany Smith for the many allegations against her.
Taking to TikTok, one said Piper essentially had a “sugar daddy” when she was just a child. Over on X/Twitter, another wrote, “Her mom has been pimping her out since she was a kid. Megan being a man is still blowing me.”
“Tiffany Smith is a disgusting vile human being,” added a third, while a fourth commented, “I hope Tiffany Smith gets the worst karma ever, she needs life in jail.”
In the past, Smith has denied any wrongdoing, and she declined to be interviewed for Bad Influence.
Text at the end of the new documentary states, “Tiffany Smith, Hunter Hill, and Piper Rockelle, via their attorney, declined to be interviewed or provide a comment for this series.
“Tiffany Smith has publicly denied the accounts of the former Squad members and their parents. Smith and Hunter Hill have also publicly denied the allegations laid out in the 2022 lawsuit.
“No criminal charges have been filed against either party.”
Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing is streaming on Netflix now. For more true crime news, read about where Rex Heuermann is now, find out when the next episode of Good American Family drops, and check out the most shocking details in the Karen Read docu-series.