Does a video show U.S. Sen. John Fetterman being arrested after pulling a gun on a person in a car? No, that's not true: The man seen in the clip is not the senator from Pennsylvania but a man in Des Moines, Iowa. According to reports, Des Moines police identified him as Bradley James Ratkovich, who was charged with assault…
Does a viral post about "a 26-year-old man from Chicago" arrested over "hacking into the Cook County Human Services system" to approve all food stamp applications describe a real-life incident? No, that's not true: The mugshot of the imaginary suspect was generated by AI. Earlier versions of the rumor started years ago as pranks and satire. The claim appeared in…
Is a video showing a transgender Florida student fake, AI-generated, or staged? No, that's not true: The footage is body camera video from the University of Central Florida Police Department. The incident occurred in February 2025 and involved then-student Jarrett Vick, who was upset about how police used pronouns when referring to them during an encounter that resulted in their…
Does a video show Ann Widdecombe murder suspect Joshua Kerry giving a speech at a communist rally praising mass murderers Stalin and Lenin? No, that's not true: The man in the video is named Joshua Covel. He is clearly identified in the video by name. He is credited in the caption as representing Red Youth, the militant youth wing of…
Is Timothy Donahue the ICE agent who shot and killed Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine on July 13, 2026? No, that's not true: Neither Immigration and Customs Enforcement nor the Maine Attorney General's Office has released the identity of the federal immigration agent involved in the shooting. A news report in April 2026 also identifies Donahue as a Border Patrol…
Was a real Florida corrections officer named "Lena Hale" arrested for impregnating inmates? No, that's not true: No credible news organizations reported the story. Viral posts making the claim shared images showing a person supposedly having two different hair colors at the moment of booking. The alleged mugshot displayed signs that were consistent with the use of generative AI. The…
Did police in the United Kingdom decide not to release CCTV footage of a suspect in the murder of Conservative Member of Parliament Ann Widdecombe to hide his race or ethnicity? No, that's not true: When Devon and Cornwall Police announced they would not release the footage, they had already publicly described the first suspect as "a white British national."…
Did multiple people, ranging from anti-Trump protesters to a granny in pink, climb to the top of the Empire State Building on the same day, displaying different messages? No, that's not true: Those images and videos were AI-generated, according to online detection tools and visual analysis. News reports confirmed that only two people -- previously featured in the 2024 documentary…
Does a viral mugshot show a woman who was arrested for gluing her husband's butt cheeks together? No, that's not true: The mugshot is of a woman arrested for starting a fire in a home where two people were inside. The arrest happened in Fairfield Township in the greater Cincinnati area. There are no credible news reports of a woman…
Was a man named Ethan Caldwell arrested after posing as a museum tour guide and inventing completely fake histories for every painting? No, that's not true: The story originated on an Instagram page known for posting parody stories. The story carries a disclaimer labeling the post as funny, comedy, satire and "for entertainment purposes only." There are no credible news…
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