Manti Te’o hoax: How did a college catfishing scandal become a Netflix hit?

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy In the world of American college football in 2009, closely watched freshman linkebacker Manti Te’o – a hot recruit from Hawaii whose talent was only matched by the religious values so closely aligned with those of the University of Notre Dame, for which he was playing – seemed untouchable. Almost exactly a month after the Heisman ceremony, where votes placed him second, sports site Deadspin broke an expose claiming that Te’O’s girlfriend had never existed. Another male member of the Polynesian community around Te’o’s age named Ronaiah Taiusosopo was revealed to have posed as a college student named Lennay Kekua, using social media photos taken from the profile of a high school classmate. Both Te’o and his family, along with Taiusosopo, were interviewed by national media outlets following revelations about the catfishing hoax; Te’o claimed to be completely unaware that Lennay had been fictitious and Taiusosopo told Dr Phil he’d been in love with Te’o during the elaborate fraud.