Tailor Looking for TikTok Fame ends up in Flame, Arrested Over Fake Bandits Attack Video
A young man identified simply as Qawiyu from Ibaragun has appealed to the Nigeria Police for forgiveness after allegedly raising a false alarm about a bandits’ attack in Ogun State.
Qawiyu, who is currently in police custody, admitted that he staged the incident in a bid to gain followers on TikTok.
“I raised a fake bandits attack just to gain TikTok followers. Please forgive me. My Ileya customers’ clothes are still in my shop,” he pleaded.
Explaining how the video was produced, Qawiyu said the Fulani herdsman featured in the clip was someone who regularly passed through the area with his cattle behind his shop.
“The Fulani herdsman usually moves around our area with his cows behind my shop. I asked him to appear in the video so I could create content. He initially refused, but I persuaded him. I also asked my apprentice to record the video,” he explained.
According to him, he was motivated by the desire to attract attention online after seeing others gain popularity through similar content.
“I did it because I saw people using such videos to gain followers,” he added.