Instagram says it deactivated the account of Hushpuppi because the embattled socialite violated its rules on fraud.
The Meta-owned platform recently suspended the account of the self-confessed international fraudster, which has 2.8 million followers.
In an interview with BBC on Wednesday, the company said it strongly condemns the use of its platform to “defraud or exploit people”.
“We don’t want anyone to use our apps to defraud or exploit people, and have clear rules against fraudulent activity – including money laundering,” a spokesperson of the company said.
“We disabled @hushpuppi’s account for breaking these rules.”
Hushpuppi was arrested in the UAE back in June 2020 alongside 11 of his associates over allegations bordering on hacking, impersonation, scamming, banking fraud, and identity theft.
His extradition to the United States followed after the UAE police detailed his arrest in a special operation dubbed ‘Fox Hunt 2’, where he was accused of defrauding 1.9 million victims to the tune of N168 billion.
The 39-year-old would later plead guilty to money laundering, putting him at the risk of 20 years imprisonment.
The embattled socialite is scheduled to be sentenced this month — although the new date remains unclear.
He was earlier expected to be sentenced on February 14 but the court adjourned the case to July 11.
The court session was again shifted to September 11 before it was further adjourned to November.
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