Hushpuppi - Instagram star wey tiff millions

Ramon Abbas - wey im 2.5 million Instagram followers know as Hushpuppi - don dey considered by di FBI to be one of di world's most high-profile fraudsters and e dey face a prison sentence of up to 20 years for US afta e plead guilty to money laundering.

Di BBC don use newly available court documents to uncover di man behind cyber heists wey don cost im victims millions, from im humble beginnings as a "Yahoo Boy" hustler for Nigeria to a so-called "Billionaire Gucci Master" living a life of luxury for Dubai before im arrest last year.

Di 37-year-old start im his career for Oworonshoki, a poor coastal area for di north-east of Lagos, Nigeria commercial capital.

Local driver Seye tell di BBC sey e remember Abbas as a young boy wey dey work alongside im mother for Olojojo market. Im father na taxi driver.

As e grow older, Seye say, Abbas like to splash cash: "e open hand well-well. E use to buy beer for everyone around."

But everyone know di source of im mysterious wealth - cybercrime; na "Yahoo", Seye tok.

"Yahoo Boys" dey romance scammers wey take dia name from di first free email available for Nigeria.

"Dem dey come up wit di idea of stealing identities. And den wit dat identity theft, dem go into dating [scams]," Dr Adedeji Oyenuga, a cybercrime expert at Lagos State University explain.

Once dem establish relationship via false identity, romance scammers collect money from dia online lovers.

Like many Yahoo Boys, Abbas expand im criminal base. Many dey go to Malaysia - and Abbas follow dem, ending up for Kuala Lumpur around 2014, den Dubai for 2017.

North Korean hackers

Dis na wen im Instagram posts - and crimes - went to another level.

In February 2019, e attenpt to launder 13million euros wey some gang of North Korean hackers thief from one Bnak for Malta.

Abigail Mamo, chief executive of di Maltese chamber of small and medium enterprises, say di fraud put di holiday island into "chaos".

Shopping trolleys wey full wit goods dey abandoned for checkouts as payment systems shut down.

"We receive calls from our members wey tell us sey dem dey use di Bank of Valletta platform send money to diar foreign suppliers," Ms Mamo tok.

"Dia foreign supplier no receive tdi money... We dey tok about thousands of euros."

Di bank say dem managedto recover 10m euros.

"Damn," Abbas tok for one text message to a fellow scammer at di time for di messages wey FBI obtain.

Di reply show as dem dey plan di next fraud: "Next one in few weeks; will let you know when it's ready. Too bad catch us, or e for be a nice pay out."

Premiership scam scuppered

For May 2019, Abbas get assignment to set up bank account for Mexico.

Na to receive £100m from a Premier League Football Club, and £200m from a UK firm. Dem no mention di name of di clubs for di court documents.

Di scam na to carry out via Business Email Compromise (BEC).

Terrifyingly simple, BEC work by intercepting payments via fake emails wey appear to come from one address wey dey almost exactly di same as di supplier own. Only one single letter or number go dey different.

For dat email di scammers - posing as a supplier wey dey await payment - typically say dem don change banks, so di payment go need to dey wired to a different account; di details for wey dem go provide.

Dem go fool di account clerk to think sey na legitimate request from di supplier - and, wit a single click of a mouse, dem go lose plenty money.

But di Premiership scam fall apart wen di UK banks refuse to pay into the Mexican account. "Brother I no fit send from UK to Mexico," Abbas sidekick message am. "Dem continue to find out."

None of di Premiership clubs gree confirm if na dem be di victim.

'Professionals shamed'

Jon Shilland, fraud lead wit di UK National Crime Agency, say e fit dey difficult to track down criminal networks based in multiple jurisdictions.

A fact wey dey known all too well by Dubai-based lawyer Barney Almazar.

Im dey represent around 25 pipo - including eight UK citizens - for United Arab Emirates (UAE), all of plenty pipo wey believe sey dem be victims of one of Hushpuppi BEC scams.

"We no fit say wit 100% certainty say Hushpuppi dey behind am," Mr Almazar am.

"But if you look di bank accounts wey police don trace dem all belong to di records obtained by di police for dia raids [on Hushpuppi home for Dubai]."

One UK victim, wey wan remain anonymous, say e lost £500,000, im don dey forced to leave di UAE - and imsef facing criminal proceedings for Dubai sake of di debt e incure as a result of di fraud.

Qatari school fraud

Abbas final big scam before im arrest for Dubai for June 2020 na straight-up identity theft, borrowed from di Yahoo Boy romance scam of im youth.

Im assum di identity of a New York banker to entrap im victim, a Qatari businessperson seeking a $15m loan to build a new school for di Gulf state.

Between December 2019 and February 2020, Abbas and a gang of alleged middlemen for Kenya, Nigeria and di US groom and cone di victim out of more dan a million dollars.

Dem launder some of di money through di purchase of a watch worth a staggering $230,000.

But soon, di gang begin crack.

One member threaten to blow di whole scam wide open as e no happy about di money edey get.

Abbas dey determined to shut am up.

Im text im contact - Nigerian police officer Abba Kyari - say: "I wan make am go through serious beating of im life.

"I want to spend money to send dis boy to jail, let him go for a very long time."

E dey alleged sey oga Kyari then falsely arrest and detain di middleman for a month for one poor Nigerian cell.

And now Mr Kyari too dey wanted for US on charges of fraud, money laundering and identity theft. Im bin previously deny sey im get any criminal involvement with Abbas - and never respond BBC requests for comment.

Still attracting followers

BEC fraud na big issue across di world. According to di FBI, for 2020 BEC fraud result in losses of $1.8bn.

Court documents allege sey Abbas crimes cost victims almost $24m in total. But some believe sey di actual total amount could fit dey much higher.

Despite him pleading guilty to di crime Hushpuppi social media still dey live and attracting followers.

We contact Instagram to ask why im account still open. Di social media platform tell di BBC sey dem don carry out investigation into di account - but decide not to close am.

Just days afta we ask Snapchat di same question, wey don delete Hushpuppi account.

Dr Oyenuga say Hushpuppi influence endures as pipo still regard am as a role model: "We dey in a kontri wia a lot of young pipo dey suffer. Dem see another young pesin wey dey like dem before as great.

"I don see parents wet don carry dia children to learn how to become Yahoo Boys."