Pakistani TikTok creator Ayesha Gilamana has died at age 28 after being shot while driving in Taxila, Pakistan, on Aug. 14. Two men on a motorcycle opened fire on her car, striking her in the neck and causing the vehicle to crash into a dump truck. Her 15-year-old sister was seriously injured in the incident.
Gilamana, whose real name was Shamsu Bibi, had amassed roughly 1.3 million followers on TikTok over three to four years of posting videos and livestreams. She also maintained a YouTube channel with about 176,000 subscribers that largely featured her collaborations and streams. According to a police complaint filed by her father, Fazal Sahibzada, Gilamana left home that evening with her sister and brother after receiving a phone call from a man identified as Kashif, who urged her to come outside immediately.
Near a petrol station in the Taxila area, the motorcycle pulled alongside the family’s black Honda. The passenger opened fire, hitting Gilamana in the neck. She lost control of the car, which then collided with a passing dump truck. Gilamana died at the scene. Her sister was taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad for treatment of serious injuries.
Sahibzada told police that his daughter had been involved in a financial dispute with two men, Kausar and Javed (also known as Shaheen), over money she was attempting to recover. He said she had previously received threats and filed a complaint against them in Islamabad. The family believes the attack was connected to that dispute. Police registered a case under sections related to murder, attempted murder, and abetment.
A special Rawalpindi police team has detained three people described as close relatives of the men named in the family’s complaint. The individuals were picked up during operations in Taxila, Attock, and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and are being questioned about possible involvement or support. Investigators have completed geofencing of the crime scene and sent Gilamana’s phone for forensic analysis. Preliminary location data indicated the named suspects’ phones were in Murree around the time of the shooting, prompting further review. The primary suspects remain at large.
Gilamana’s TikTok account was switched to private following her death. Fellow creators shared tributes online in the days after the incident, with one writing that her memory would remain and that justice was being sought. The case continues under investigation as police examine CCTV footage, phone records, and the roles of those already detained.
