A brazilian influencer mom is accused of faking her own kidnapping for clout.
A Brazilain influencer mom has been arrested for allegedly faking her and her husband's kidnapping to gain social media attention – and even her husband didn't know about her plan.
The Kidnapping
Monniky Fraga is a 27-year-old influencer, who posts pictures and videos of herself on Instagram and TikTok. In April 2025, she claimed to have been kidnapped. After returning to her home in Igarassu with her husband Lucas, three armed men approached them, she reported. They threatened to torture them and demanded ransom. Her husband was beaten and their belongings were taken. The couple was kept in the woods for hours, Fraga claims. "I didn't know if I'd make it back," she told her fans crying. "All I could think about was my children."
Eventually, after the $100,000 ransom was paid, they were released, which triggered a police investigation.
Smokescreen Of Likes
The investigation, codenamed "Smokescreen of Likes", revealed a different story. According to police, the kidnapping was actually organized by the influencer herself. Officers checked her phone records, which showed that "she not only knew about it, but agreed things in advance and stayed in contact with one of those involved afterwards.”
Detective Cley Anderson states:
As the investigation progressed, it found indications that the alleged kidnap-for-ransom was in fact nothing more than a plot between the supposed victim and one of the perpetrators.
The police suspect that the influencer orchestrated this whole ordeal in order to gain attention online.
The evidence demonstrated this victim orchestrated her own kidnapping as a way to gain engagement on social media.
Moreover, her husband, who was actually beaten and robbed, had no idea of his wife's involvement. He was a genuine victim. Detective Anderson noted:
At all times, he has maintained that he genuinely believed it was a real kidnapping.
Other than Fraga, one of the suspects is already in prison for another offense, one died before police found him and the last one had his home searched. Monniky Fraga was taken into custody during a raid on May 24, according to The Sun. She has been charged with blackmail, perverting the course of justice and wasting police time. She herself maintains on her innocence and claims she really was kidnapped and everything was real. Her lawyers are trying to let her get home on house arrest to her young children.
