Student, 21, feared online boyfriend was a catfish – but a he’s real Nigerian prince

A Nottingham law student who thought her online boyfriend was a “catfish” has found out he is actually a Nigerian prince.

Esther Akpovi found out about his identity after appearing on MTV’s Catfish UK.

The 21-year-old told NottinghamshireLive : “It was an interesting opportunity and I guess I was just like ‘why not, let’s see how it goes’.

“My family and friends watched. They were surprised to see me on TV as I didn’t tell anyone but they definitely enjoyed it.”

In the episode, Esther was worried that her virtual lover Theo wasn’t who he says he is.

She said that he would repeatedly avoid video calls and was too busy to meet.

Catfishing is when an individual sets up a fake online profile pretending to be someone else in order to lure people who are looking for love.

It turned out that not only is Theo a real person, but he is a prince.

He explained the reason why he was hiding such a fact from her was to have Esther get to know him without judgement.

Hosts Oobah Butler and Julie Adenuga set about helping Esther, who moved to Nottingham from Lagos, Nigeria as a child.

Despite describing Theo as “sweet” and “thoughtful”, and saying she felt as if “the universe has connected us”, Esther also said: “He’s always in a meeting, whenever I try to video call he doesn’t pick up.”

During the episode, a series of red flags emerged, including that Theo was living in South London and not Nigeria.

The hosts and Esther went to his flat and found out he is really Theo.

He explained: “I was telling my name is Theo – which is actually my middle name and if you know me quite well then I’ll say my first name is Michael.”

When confronted about not doing any video calls, he said: “To be honest, I just didn’t have the time. I’m quite busy, I’m running three different business ventures.”

He also said he had returned to Nigeria briefly because of the death of his dad, and casually mentioned the fact he was a prince.

Esther has said that she and Theo are still seeing each other.

She added: “But we are both at very pivotal stages in our career and life which may influence the cause and effect of our relationship.”

Apart from being studying Law, Esther sits on the One Nottingham Board at Nottingham City Council.

She added: “I have now navigated into the world of venture capital as I see impact investing as a vehicle for social change.”