Toronto sisters arrested for allegedly cyberbullying and extorting Nigerian billionaire

Nigerian news sites report that Jyoti and Kiran Matharoo are being detained there; Global Affairs Canada confirmed it is aiding the duo being held in Lagos.

 

Kiran Matharoo, seen in photo from her Instagram account, is reportedly being detained in Lagos, Nigeria. (Instagran Photo)

  

 

Jyoti Matharoo, seen in photo from her Instagram account, is reportedly being detained in Lagos, Nigeria. (Instagran Photo)

Two sisters from Toronto with a substantial Instagram following have been detained in Lagos, Nigeria, reportedly to face allegations that they tried to extort and cyber-bully a Nigerian billionaire.

According to the news site Politics Nigeria, sisters Jyoti and Kiran Matharoo are accused of trying to blackmail the billionaire by claiming they had evidence of businessman Femi Otedola cheating on his wife that they would post on a notorious sex-scandal website.

Forbes magazine’s list of 2016 billionaires says Otedola made his money in the energy sector; it estimates his net worth at $1.8 billion.

Following a private investigation, the sisters were arrested, the publication said. According to a court document dated Dec. 20 and posted to Nigeria Politics, the sisters stand accused of being “responsible” for the website NaijaGistLive and several other social media accounts on Instagram and Twitter used for “cyberbullying” around 274 people, “mostly based in various regions of Africa.”

A Toronto home address has been entered in the document for the sisters. 

Combined, Jyoti and Kiran have nearly 50,000 followers on Instagram. Other local media supported the Politics Nigeria account of the sisters’ legal troubles.

Global Affairs Canada confirmed to the Star that consular services were being provided to the Canadian citizens who have been detained in Lagos, Nigeria.