Instagram model Woah Vicky causes fury among followers by faking her own kidnapping because she was 'bored'

Influencer Victoria Rose, who who is better known to her followers as Whoa Vicky, had posted a string of posts on X, which have now been deleted, that claim she had been kidnapped for ransom while on holiday in Nigeria.

One of the posts read: “I have kidnapped Vicky. She is with me in Nigeria. I am demanding $1million (around £810,000) for her release.” This lead to concern for her safety from her 85,000 followers.

But, then in on Instagram Live posted on Sunday (December 29), Vicky admitted she had been the one behind the post and she had not been kidnapped at all. Describing the decision she made as a prank and a “little fun”, she said she had done it because she was “bored”. Suggesting that she had been helped in her “prank” she said: “We kind of got carried away with the joke, you know, we just like to have fun and joke,” she said in the Instagram Live.”

She went on to try to justify her actions. She said: “I don't drink or go to the club, so this is how I find my entertainment. You know, it's probably not the best way to do it. I'd probably be like reading the Bible or something like that.”

She also said she was a Christian and linked her actions to her faith. “The Bible said laughter is good for the soul. So I'd be wanting to laugh, and this is how I find that funny,' she said. She added that she struggled to find people to date so instead made up the kidnapping to “have fun”.

She added, however, “I'm not saying this was the right thing to do. But I take accountability and ownership. I'm sorry for anyone that I harmed in the process. But it's all love.”

In her last post on the matter, which was posted on Monday (December 30) is still visible on her X account, the star said: “Not thinking things through comes with consequences, and I’m paying for it now.”

She also explained that her friends, father and brother had helped her with the supposed prank. She wrote: “ The prank started with us calling people I know from America. Then my brother from the USA posted it, and it ended up on blogs.”

She went on to admit that she had hoped to make money via the hoax: “Afterward, my brother from the USA suggested I make a tweet to keep it going, saying it was a good prank and that father was a great actor. He even mentioned we could make money by creating a cryptocurrency based on the prank. Father and I agreed, but in hindsight, it was a terrible idea.

“We weren’t thinking at all. It quickly became clear how bad this was when his friends started calling him, concerned. That’s when we decided to go live and explain that it was all fake. I’ve learned a lot from this, and I’ll be taking time off the internet to reflect, fast, and grow closer to God.“

But, she seems to have lost fans because of her prank. “ False and bad excuses! You admit to having wanted to scam people with a cryptocurrency. You are the worst person I know, shame on you and your family who is only there for the money and makes fun of the world,” one person said in response to her apology.”

Another person suggested she had now been cancelled. “We’re leaving you in 2023 girl,” they stated. Many also questioned if the apology post had actually been written by her, as they claimed it did not come across in the way they would expect having read many of her other online messages.

Some people did, however, say that they would forgive her. Vicky returned to social media around two hours after her last post on the subject.