Does a video of an ICE agent taking a U.S. citizen off a plane in Texas show a real incident? No, that's not true: The video was a scripted skit performed by actors, showing a person wearing a face covering and flashing a badge before removing a man from a plane. The TikTok account where it was originally posted features…
Does a video show plainclothes ICE agents arresting a woman at a gate at San Francisco International Airport on March 22, 2026? Yes, that's true: A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told Lead Stories that two women-- not one --were arrested. The spokesperson said the women attempted to flee and resisted officers. The claim appeared in a video (archived here)…
Does a video show President Donald Trump patting a Secret Service agent on her backside? No, that's not true: The video appears to show a version of the White House Oval Office that does not match the real one, with visual details that differ from the actual room. There is also no evidence that the incident occurred or that the…
Did Devarjaye "DJ" Daniel, the brain cancer survivor whom President Trump made an honorary Secret Service agent, die on February 23, 2026? No, that's not true: As of Feb. 25, 2026, there was no evidence that DJ had died. Following similar rumors in January 2026, DJ's dad, Theodis Daniel, said, "If any update [does] not come from me, his Dad,…
Do photos and social media accounts of Austin Tucker Martin reveal him to be transgender? No, that's not true: The photos purporting to show Martin, who was killed while allegedly armed and breaking into President Trump's private Mar-a-Lago club, are mislabeled. They show an unidentified person who does not resemble verified family photos of Martin. No credible reporting about Austin…
Does a video of passengers on a plane screaming while an "unknown creature is loose" show a real incident? No, that's not true: The video clip of the passengers screaming and jumping up on their seats to avoid an unknown critter running around the plane was a skit with actors. The TikTok page where it was originally posted features dozens…
Did CNN report that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who "un-alived" Minnesota nurse Alex Pretti and claimed "self-defense" was found "not-guilty"? No, that's not true: A search across the network's website did not show any CNN story saying that happened. Talking to Lead Stories, CNN's spokesperson said that the claim is false. As of this writing, none of the…
Does a photo show a white American flying a Mexican flag while driving a truck through Minneapolis as a way to make ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents waste their time? No, that's not true: The photo shown in the social post making the claim that the practice is called "ICE fishing" was taken in Los Angeles and published in…
Is the business featured in a recent video by Dr. Mehmet Oz related to hospice and home care fraud in Los Angeles? No, that's not true: The business is a family-owned and operated bakery and market and there is no evidence that implicates the business in any fraud prosecution or to the hospice and home care industry. Several other businesses…
Did police find encrypted messages on Alex Pretti's phone that showed the ICU nurse was a "key player" in coordinating a plan to create the chaos that led to him being shot to death by federal agents in Minneapolis? No, that's not true: There is no credible reporting anywhere that supports an article claiming its details are "sending shockwaves through…
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