FACT CHECK: No, Hushpuppi has not been released from prison

FACT CHECK: No, Hushpuppi has not been released from prison

A viral post has claimed that Ramon Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi, has been released from prison and deported back to Nigeria after serving his sentence.

The X post, shared by @AJ on Monday, has garnered over 1.1 million views, 781 retweets, 5.9k likes, and 1.8k comments.

The post shared here, here, and here was accompanied by a purported image of Hushpuppi in handcuffs at an airport.

The X user also claimed that Hushpuppi was released on Sunday for good behaviour during his incarceration.

“Ramon Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi, has reportedly been released and deported back to Nigeria following his 2022 sentencing in the United States,” the post reads.

“He was freed yesterday after serving time, reportedly due to good behavior and commitment during his stay in prison. Welcome back, Ray Hushpuppi.”

Huspuppi is a Nigerian internet celebrity serving an 11-year jail term in the US for crimes bordering on money laundering, cyber fraud, hacking, impersonation, scamming individuals, banking fraud, and identity theft worth Dh1.6 billion (an estimated N168 billion).

VERIFICATION

Hushpuppi was sentenced in November 2022 to 11 years in prison and is currently serving his term at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Fort Dix in New Jersey, United States. He is expected to complete his sentence in 2029.

A search of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) inmate locator shows that the 43-year-old remains in custody.

The register provides details of inmates, including their name, age, facility location, and projected release date.

CableCheck ran a reverse image search on the attached image from the viral post using Google Lens. The result showed that the man in the photo was identified in earlier reports as Lawrence Folawunmi, a Nigerian businessman who was reportedly detained at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, over alleged email compromise and wire fraud.

CableCheck also found no credible media report confirming Hushpuppi’s purported release.

Given the high-profile nature of his conviction, any official release would have attracted widespread coverage by major international and Nigerian news outlets.

In addition, the claim is not new. In 2023, CableCheck similarly debunked a viral post alleging that Hushpuppi had been released from prison.

VERDICT

The claim that Hushpuppi has been released from prison and deported to Nigeria is false.