Instagram: Man arrested for impersonating Emir of Kano

The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II

A man has been taken into police custody for allegedly pretending to be the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, on Instagram.

The 20-year-old suspect had more than 200,000 followers on Instagram and was even given a so-called blue tick – which verifies the account is real.

The account is currently marked as private but still has the blue tick.

Musa Magaji from Kano state police told the BBC the investigation is still ongoing and they hoped to charge the man as soon as possible with impersonation and fraud.

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He added that the Emir was one of seven people who had been impersonated, including other businessmen and public figures.

Police say the man in question gained a following of at least three million followers across all his fake accounts.