Housing

Is the city of Los Angeles planning to convert a parking lot across from a high school in Encino into a camp for homeless people to live in 125 RVs? No, that's not true: The proposal to use a train station parking lot would provide temporary storage space for RVs after the homeless owners move off the street and into…

Does a "Breaking News" video of a church fire document an arson-caused fire at a church in Quebec, Canada? No, that's not true: The fire happened 10 months before the video was posted. Official reports at the time noted a private developer was developing housing on the site and the origin of the fire appeared to be a container next…

Was American Derek Huffman killed in a drone strike while fighting for the Russian military in Ukraine in July 2025? A YouTube account used by his wife claimed in a comment that Huffman is alive and well. Another American acquaintance of Huffman also told Lead Stories that Huffman is alive, but definitive proof was not immediately available. Here's what we…

Did the country music singer George Strait donate $3.5 million to help recovery efforts after devastating flooding in parts of Texas, in July 2025? No, that's not true: We found no corroboration for a blog post that was shared widely and also claimed Strait joined a volunteer crew in aid efforts. A statement attributed to Strait was completely fabricated, and…

Did California Governor Gavin Newsom post fake photos of National Guard troops sleeping on a hard floor during their deployment to the Los Angeles riot zone in June of 2025, as a social media post claimed? No, that's not true: The post provides no evidence the images were AI-generated, other than a set of red arrows overlaid without explanation and…

Did Donald Trump announce he is imposing a 300% penalty on landlords who raise rents excessively? No, that's not true: No White House news releases or videos corroborate that. The rumor arises from a fake news-style video providing no authentic quotes, links, interviews or other evidence Trump made such a proposal. The claim appeared on a June 3, 2025 TikTok…

Did the UK government or Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves institute a levy on windows consisting of a £3.70 monthly fee on each, as of May 13, 2025? No, that's not true: No official sources made such an announcement. The window tax was abandoned in the U.K. by the mid-19th century. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Was basketball player Steph Curry's mother Sonia denied service at a Ferrari dealership and did this lead to the creation of a campaign named "Respect in Every Space" in collaboration with Under Armour? No, that's not true: The viral social media story is very likely fictional as there is no trace of such a campaign on the website of Under…

Are homicide detectives searching for Joselyn Valdo Santos for the killing of three-month-old Charlotte Jones on April 1, 2025? No, that's not true: Social media posts making the claim are part of a bait-and-switch scam designed to lure you into sharing personal information that can then be sold or used to scam you further. These posts use unrelated mugshots and…

Are two homicide suspects named Seth Chancey and Madison Smith on the run for the killing of 10-month-old Derrick Taylor as of March 24, 2025? No, that's not true: The posts are fake, part of a bait-and-switch scam aimed at luring social media users to ad posts designed to harvest personal and financial information. These posts use mugshots taken from…