Farzad ‘Tony’ Toutouni, also dubbed the Iranian ‘King of Instagram’ saw his account on the Meta-owned platform taken down after his arrest. Tony, whose Instagram handle was lunatic_living, was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials on November 10.
His Instagram page now displays the message “Sorry, this page isn’t available,” followed by “The link you followed may be broken, or the page may have been removed.” This usually happens when an account is deactivated or deleted, or it’s taken down by Meta. Tony reportedly had about a million followers on Instagram and was known for posting about his flashy lifestyle, including luxury cars, private jets, and lavish parties.
What to know about Farzad ‘Tony’ Toutouni’s arrest
ICE noted that Toutouni was arrested on October 27. “Toutouni has prior removal orders and criminal convictions, including kidnapping, robbery, and extortion. He remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings,” they added, sharing visuals of the arrest.
What ICE said about Toutouni’s past crimes and Instagram life
As per ICE, Tony who also used the first name Robert, entered the US illegally for the first time in 1983. He was asked to be removed by an immigration judge in 1993. However, he was not removed at the time, and in 1999, an immigration judge again ordered Tony’s removal.
At this time, he was deported to Mexico. He then entered the US illegally again in April 2011, the ICE release noted. Tony’s entry point was near Saint Clair, Michigan, where he reportedly crossed the river using an electric raft he’d bought in Canada.
His criminal spree reportedly began as early as 1989 and allegedly continued till the present day. The statement noted that he’d been arrested for criminal threats, criminal conspiracy, and possession and sale of a controlled substance. Tony was also sentenced to over 16 months for making or passing a fictitious check, grand theft of access card, conspiracy to commit crime, possess/alter access card equipment, forgery, kidnapping, robbery and extortion, as per the ICE release.
Speaking of his life on Instagram, the federal agency noted, “Recently, Toutouni has been living a high-profile life as a social media celebrity with more than 1 million Instagram followers, but his content appears to consist of hard- and soft-core pornography. He often posts pictures of himself with high-end cars, luxury aircraft and scantily clad women.”
They also noted that in June 2023, Israeli immigrant Emil Lahaziel was murdered outside the West Hollywood mansion which Tony was renting. Currently, he remains in ICE custody, pending removal proceedings.