Nigeria: Hushpuppi, ‘419’ and the perceived glorification of fraud
By
‘Tofe Ayeni
Reserved for subscribers
Posted on
April 15, 2021 17:37
Nigeria’s social media ‘celebrity’ Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi, was arrested in Dubai in June 2020 on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering and engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity. But his illegal activities are rooted in a culture where many young people see fraud as the only way to make money.
In the pretrial, he pleaded not guilty to all four counts and risks 20 years imprisonment if convicted. The 37-year-old, who described himself in his Instagram biography as a ‘real estate developer’, gained popularity by flaunting his wealth to his over 2.5 million followers.
When he was arrested by the FBI — who collaborated with Snapchat, Instagram and Apple — Hushpuppi and his accomplices were