 "Who is Woah Vicky, social media influencer who faked her kidnapping?")
Influencer Woah Vicky has confessed to faking her kidnapping during a trip to Nigeria.
She is now facing backlash on social media due to the panic caused among her followers.
The Instagram model, whose real name is Victoria Rose, gained attention after reports spread that she had been kidnapped in Nigeria.
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Who is Woah Vicky?
Victoria Rose Waldrip, better known as Woah Vicky, is an American social media influencer and model. She first gained attention in 2017 for her controversial content, which included using racial slurs and claiming to be Black despite her Caucasian background.
Beyond her social media fame, Woah Vicky has explored music and appeared in various video projects. Her career has been marked by a string of controversies, often sparking debates surrounding race and identity.
The ‘kidnapping’ controversy
Woah Vicky gained fame through social media platforms, particularly Instagram and TikTok, where she built a large following of millions.
In a series of now-deleted posts, the influencer claimed she had been abducted while in Nigeria, with the kidnappers demanding a ransom of one million dollars. Her posts caused concern among her followers and went viral after a tweet was shared from her account.
One of the posts, which also had photos of Vicky with a man who was later identified as her brother, read, “I have kidnapped Vicky. She is with me in Nigeria. I am demanding $1 million for her release.”
Woah Vicky's page posted that she's been kidnapped in Nigeria! 😯 pic.twitter.com/pWlMMSaOs7
— Baddie TEA (@bgctea2020) December 29, 2024
After this tweet and several other posts, including one showing a man beside her, Vicky deleted the content and later explained the situation in a live stream.
Rony Fargo, a friend of Vicky’s, posted updates claiming he had received FaceTime calls from someone allegedly holding her hostage. Fargo also filed a police report, which seemed to add credibility to the fabricated situation. However, others contradicted the claims, pointing out the timestamps.
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Screenshots from Fargo’s Instagram story showed him claiming to have received FaceTime calls from the supposed kidnapper. “He has her phone and he been calling me and everyone in her phone all night demanding $1 million for her release,” Fargo wrote in one post.
Mentioning the police report, he said, “This isn’t a joke. dead serious.” He also posted what he believed to be a photograph of the alleged abductor on his Instagram story.
‘I was bored and having fun’
The influencer later apologised for the incident, including the fake ransom demand, with a subtle explanation citing “boredom.”
In a video addressing the controversy, Vicky appeared casual as she said, “Sorry about that, y’all. It’s all love. I was just bored and having fun, just trying to get a laugh.”
Update: Influencer Woah Vicky says OOPS my bad after starting a false rumor that an African man kidnapped her while she is in Nigeria
— Raphouse TV (RHTV) (@raphousetv7) December 29, 2024
"I was just bored forgive me y'all" 😬 pic.twitter.com/OeRcIu7fq1
Though Vicky eventually admitted that the kidnapping was staged, her dismissive tone only intensified the backlash.
“I was just having fun with my brother. Everything good, though. Everything good. I’m sorry about that, please forgive me,” she said.
“We kind of got carried away with the joke, you know, we just like to have fun and joke," she continued. “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.”
Vicky followed up by posting a photo of herself with her brother, the man seen in the pictures from her alleged kidnapping.
Her friend, who had shared updates on her Instagram, deleted the posts and shared a shocked emoji in his Instagram Stories.
In a separate post, she wrote, “I just wanted to come on here one last time to sincerely apologise to anyone I may have harmed during this prank. Not thinking things through comes with consequences, and I’m paying for it now.”
Hello,
— Victoria Rose (@woahhvickyyy) December 30, 2024
I just wanted to come on here one last time to sincerely apologize to anyone I may have harmed during this prank. Not thinking things through comes with consequences, and I’m paying for it now.
My brother, father dmw looked out for me throughout my entire trip to…
“I’ve learned a lot from this, and I’ll be taking time off the internet to reflect, fast, and grow closer to God. Please keep me in your prayers.”
This is not the first time Vicky has found herself at the centre of a social media storm.
Just last month, she sparked controversy by sharing the qualities she was looking for in a partner, specifically stating that she wanted a “successful Black athlete.”
“I’m a white Christian single woman who’s looking for a successful black athlete. Football or basketball is fine with me, let’s have children and be loyal and get married. Any takers?” she wrote at the time.
Netizens slam Woah Vicky
Vicky’s confession was met with immediate backlash, with many criticising her for causing unnecessary panic and trivialising a serious issue.
Fargo, who had been misled by the hoax, expressed his frustration on Instagram, replacing his original post with a statement about being deceived.
“Apologies mean nothing when you’ve disrespected an entire culture for clout. You should’ve thought about the consequences before you turned Nigeria into your personal playground for likes,” one comment read.
“We already know that it was a prank. Apology accepted,” another user wrote.
In response to her recent apology post, one user commented, “You didn’t write this. You can’t type a single sentence without a spelling error. That was such a weird thing to do and I don’t know why you still have a platform.”
You didn’t write this. You can’t type a single sentence without a spelling error. That was such a weird thing to do and I don’t know why you still have a platform.
— Big Mac (@GothGirlMacayla) December 31, 2024
“Hope no one trusts a single word from you moving forward. You’re evil,” another user added.
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