Unpacking the “Danish Deception”: How a fake royal allegedly conned a creator out of over $130K

Over the course of a week, TikToker Onyeka Ehie (@onyekaehie) released a sprawling 30-part series she calls "The Danish Deception," a nearly five-hour chronicle of a relationship she says was built on lies and manipulation.

In the videos, she recounts meeting a man who claimed to be part of a wealthy Danish royal family, falling into a whirlwind romance, and ultimately discovering (after marriage, mounting financial entanglements, and a sudden disappearance) that most of his life story was completely fabricated.

How the "Danish Deception" romance started, and when the cracks appeared

Onyeka, a 31-year-old Nigerian content creator based in Texas, said the entire ordeal began during a vacation in Croatia. While traveling with a friend, she met a handsome Danish man who she claimed "looks like a Calvin Klein model."

They spent time together during the trip, and afterward, he continued pursuing her online. According to her, he reacted to every Instagram Story she posted.

Soon, he allegedly presented a glamorous version of his life. He said he belonged to a wealthy Danish royal family. Onyeka said he invited her to Monaco, paid for every part of the trip, and treated her to luxury restaurants and a lavish hotel.

They exchanged "I love yous" during that getaway, which, in her telling, shifted the relationship from flirtation to commitment.

The money problems he couldn’t explain

As their relationship deepened, the Danish man visited Texas and met her family. Their long-distance arrangement soon felt exhausting, so they discussed marriage as a path toward him securing a U.S. green card.

However, the first major problem appeared when he claimed one of his properties required an urgent £50,000 fix. When Onyeka asked about his supposedly wealthy family, she said he blamed old conflicts with his father.

Then, when Onyeka offered to help, he refused, but she allegedly eventually "wore him down" (no doubt a tactic on his part to make it seem like accepting the offer was in good faith). After that, new crises emerged regularly. At one point, she said, his debt to her climbed to nearly £100,000 (or ~$132,000 USD).

Later, she traveled to Denmark and met his family, which she said went surprisingly well. They became engaged soon after. Even though money always seemed "held up," he promised relief would arrive soon.

They married within months of meeting and took a honeymoon, despite quiet warnings she received from his friends about a past "gambling addiction." He insisted those issues were old news.

@onyekaehie The Danish Deception: Part 12 #danishdeception #fyp #series ♬ original sound - Onyeka Ehie

Eventually, Onyeka’s friend called with alarming information: her husband allegedly owed the friend’s boyfriend £200k. The Danish man tried to frame it as a failed crypto venture, yet this time, Onyeka pushed back. She confronted him, and he agreed to attend gambling recovery classes.

As time passed, she noticed irregularities in the screenshots he sent to verify his assets. When she confronted him again, she said he lashed out and threatened to leave. According to Onyeka, he soon disappeared, leaving behind enormous debts and confusion.

The disappearance that exposed everything

Once he left, Onyeka said she told her family everything. They revealed he had also borrowed money from them. She later found out he had allegedly cheated on her throughout their marriage. His family eventually admitted they had no royal ties, and that his gambling issues were long-standing.

@onyekaehie The Danish Deception: The Conclusion If you or anyone you know was conned by my ex please send all statements and evidence to danishdeceptiontips@gmail.com #danishdeception #series #fyp ♬ original sound - Onyeka Ehie

In her final TikTok video of the series, Onyeka explained why she chose to talk publicly. She said, "Love is a powerful drug, y'all." She reflected on never expecting to fall for a situation she had seen in scams like the Tinder Swindler. She emphasized that she wanted to protect others, saying, "This man was a professional international criminal con artist, and he will not stop."

She also addressed gambling addiction directly, explaining its hidden nature. "It is truly invisible until it's catastrophic." She warned that skilled gamblers may forge "emails, documents, invoices, websites," and even produce files "with fingerprints on them."

Onyeka closed by reassuring viewers, "If you've gone through something similar, just know you're not alone."

In several other TikToks, Onyeka shared some of the comments she had received from women who experienced similar fraudsters and called out the people who were victim blaming in the comments of her videos.

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