BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A Bellingham city councilmember fell victim to a fake social media account posting inflammatory comments under his name.

Fox13 reports that Michael Lilliquist’s name and photo were used to create a YouTube account that left offensive remarks on various videos. According to Fox13, the comments ranged from criticisms of affordable housing policies to more extreme and slanderous statements.

Lilliquist tells My Bellingham Now that he only learned of the account when he read about it on Fox13 and immediately reported it. He says the account was made five months ago and assumes it had been leaving the fake comments ever since.

Lilliquist adds there was another fake profile leaving comments under the name of a member on the Whatcom County Charter Review Commission.

A YouTube spokesperson told Fox13 yesterday (Thurs) that the fake Lilliquist account has been terminated for violating the platform’s impersonation policy.

Meanwhile, Lilliquist says he still hasn’t heard back from YouTube moderators and emphasizes the importance of holding the impersonator accountable to prevent future incidents.