A boy with two heads has been found in Nigeria, according to numerous posts on Facebook circulating in April 2024.
The posts, which have attracted hundreds of reactions from users, include photos of a boy who appears to have two heads and a piece of cloth over his shoulders.
The same photos and similar claims can be found on Facebook here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
Another post, sharing the same photo, is written in Pidgin and reads: “Dem don discover man with two heads for Naija. Some people dey talk say na film scene, but we never sabi for sure. Dis tori don scatter ground, we go update una as e dey unfold.”
Translated into English this is: “They have discovered a man with two heads in Nigeria. Some people say it’s from a film scene, but we are not certain. The story has gone viral and we will update you as things unfold.”
So what does this photo really show? We checked.
A special effect from a TV show
Conjoined twins can happen when two foetuses do not develop fully in the uterus and are born physically connected, sometimes sharing some organs and body parts. They are very rare, accounting for one in 50,000 live births.
Conjoined twins will occasionally have two heads, known as a dicephalic parapagus.
Nigeria has had two recorded cases of conjoined twins since 2020. Their separations were successful and well-documented.
A search for news of a male conjoined twin in Nigeria turned up nothing. Such a discovery would have made headlines if it were true.
A reverse image search of the photo circulating on Facebook revealed that it was the work of a make-up artist known on social media as Hakeem Effects.
The photo is a screenshot from a video originally posted on the artist’s Instagram page. A fake head was placed on an actor’s shoulder to make it look like he had two heads. This was for the Netflix series Aníkúlápó: Rise of the Spectre.
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