AFP Investigation Casts Doubt On White House Claim That Somali TikToker Aided 2009 Spy Kidnapping

A Somali migrant deported from the United States and publicly called an "illegal scumbag" by the White House for allegedly helping abduct two French intelligence officers in Mogadishu may have been wrongly accused, an AFP investigation suggests.

Mahad Maxamud returned to Somalia last month to a celebratory reception, in part because he is a prominent social-media personality with more than 450,000 TikTok followers. U.S. authorities publicly linked him to the insurgent group Al-Shabaab, which has ties to Al-Qaeda. But AFP's reporting — based on weeks of inquiries and interviews with Somali and French intelligence contacts — raises questions about the evidence behind that claim.

Questions From Somali And French Sources

Two Somali security agents who spoke to AFP said they had no prior information directly connecting Maxamud to the 2009 kidnapping of French operatives Marc Aubrière and Denis Allex from the Sahafi Hotel in Mogadishu. A French security source close to the DGSE, France's external intelligence service, was unequivocal: "Mahad Maxamud was not involved in the kidnapping." These statements undercut the public U.S. assertions tying him to the case.

Arrest, Deportation And Denial

Maxamud says he moved to South Africa a year before the 2009 abduction. He arrived in the United States in 2022 and worked for companies including Amazon and Uber before being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minnesota in May. In a widely shared post on X (formerly Twitter) on Oct. 24, the White House described him as a "criminal illegal scumbag" and said he had been "involved in the kidnapping of French officials from Sahafi Hotel, Mogadishu." Maxamud denies the allegations.

In November U.S. authorities deported him to Mogadishu via Kenya along with seven other Somali nationals. He described his arrest as traumatic, saying masked men in bulletproof vests put a gun to his head before taking him into custody. The White House did not respond to AFP's request for comment.

Hero's Welcome And Online Fallout

Back in Somalia, Maxamud has leaned into his celebrity status, posting polished videos of his arrival and riding through crowds in an SUV. The accusation appears to have boosted his popularity: he gained roughly 100,000 followers after the Oct. 24 post and met with Ahmed Abdi Kariye, president of Galmudug region.

Possible Role Of Online Rivalries

Some Somalis suspect that online enemies and smear campaigns played a role. A small number of web articles tying Maxamud to the kidnapping appear on sites such as Suna Times, run by a Netherlands-based TikTok rival. Relatives and supporters say jealous rivals may have amplified false claims. Somali TikTokers often engage in split-screen "battle" videos trading insults and jokes to win gifts; observers warn these contests can take on clan-based, ethnic overtones and occasionally provoke real-world violence.

"A TikTok video filmed in Minnesota can trigger (armed) clan mobilisation in Somalia within hours," said Jethro Norman, a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies.

AFP's reporting does not prove Maxamud's innocence or guilt; instead, its findings highlight that several local and French intelligence sources see no clear evidence linking him to the 2009 abductions. The discrepancy between public U.S. statements and the intelligence contacts AFP interviewed raises important questions about the basis for the public accusation.