Miss BumBum pageant rocked by fakery scandal as six contestants accused of cheating by using ROBOTS to cast votes
BRAZIL'S Miss BumBum contest was plunged into chaos today after six contestants were accused of cheating by using ROBOTS to cast votes.
The eagerly awaited final of the world famous "best bottom" competition is due to take place next month, when 15 well endowed beauties will battle it out for the coveted title.
The original 27 contestants found out last month who had received the most public votes to make it through to the final.
But the popular beauty pageant launched a probe after a website claimed some of the women had used computer software to amass thousands of online votes in a just a few hours.
Now organisers confirmed six finalists have been docked 40,000 votes each "for the use of or attempted use of robots to interfere with the public vote."
They include favourite for the title Rosie Oliveira, representing the jungle state of Amazonas, who came first in the public ballot with 149,404 votes.
Second placed Pietra Maya, who got 148,547 votes, and third-placed Hellen Cristyan, who gained 144,736, have also been accused of cheating.
The scandal, which could see the women eliminated from the competition, has thrown the pageant into disarray just weeks before the live final at a ceremony in Sao Paulo on November 6.
The allegations surfaced when Brazilian website iG Gente claimed they had evidence some of the Miss BumBum hopefuls had cheated by paying computer experts to use software which cast thousands of votes for them online.
Many of the voting surges happened in the early hours of the morning, it claimed.
One one day, the voting page for Pietra Maya, representing the state of Parana, showed her votes climbing by 28,188 during just 91 minutes from 4.07am.
Two contestants, who didn't want to be named, told the website that "everybody" knew a number of the women who could afford to pay for the software had falsely inflated their share of the public vote.
One told the website: "Sincerely, I don't think these were fans voting, it was robbery plain and simple.
"If it's proved that any candidate has cheated, she should be held responsible and punished by the contest.
"I don't believe that an organisers of an event with international repute should be seen being part of fraudulently choosing Brazil's most beautiful butt."
Another finalist, Deye Campos, claimed it wasn't the only dirty trick being played by the women to gain the upper hand as the competition hotted up.
She said: "They deleted my Instagram account, because they were worried I about my potential to get more votes than them.
"I don't doubt anything any more. Many of these girls will do whatever it takes, nothing's off limits."
In a statement, the Miss Bumbum pageant said that "since the creation of the competition in 2011 we have tried to perfect our voting system to avoid fraud, it is our responsibility to invigilate the vote so that no candidate is unfairly jeaopardised."
One of the accused, Pietra Maya, representing the state of Parana, denied using the software to amass votes.
She said: "I was shocked to be accused of fraud. I am really sad that my rivals have done this, just because I came first in the voting. Why do they need to try to defame me just because they didn't do as well as me?"
She added that she is afraid of being declassfied from the Miss BumBum finals, saying: "If that happened it would be a grave error because my votes are honest ones."
The scandal erupted as the competition's organisers this week announced that famous Brazilian "butt selfie" queen Gracyanne Barbosa would be hosting this year's live final.
The 34-year-old fitness model's eye-raising posts of her 44-inch bottom - two inches bigger than Kim Karsashian's - have won her a huge following with more than 5.5million devoted fans on Instagram and more than six million on Facebook.
Gracyanne said she was "delighted" to land the role fronting the event, and said: "The world has always been attracted to the curvy bodies of Brazilian women, and for Brazilians the bottom is our national passion.
"That's why the competition has so much exposure and attracts interest from all around the world."
Playboy bunny Jeni Summers, 29, is gorging on steak and doing two hours of squats a day as she bids to be the first non-Brazilian to lift the Miss BumBum crown.
Another contestant, Suzi Cortez, hopes to become the new Paul the Octopus by using her curvy backside to predict results at next year's World Cup in Russia.
Last year's Miss BumBum contest, rocked by bitter claims of implants and vote buying, was won by Erika Canela of Bahia state.
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