Does a video shared to Instagram authentically show a car-sized drone or flying object flying over the Las Vegas Strip? No, that's not true: The original video was posted to TikTok with a caption stating, "This video was created digitally." The profile that initially published the video is self-described as "Mixed reality. Definitely not CIA."
The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on Instagram on December 18, 2024. It included a text overlay that read, "NEWEST SIGHTING OF FLYING OBJECT IN LAS VEGAS." A caption with the post read:
LAS VEGAS THIS ONE IS THE BEST ... what could it be and what is the gov hiding from us. #drone #uap #ufo #thewheel #lasvegas #explorepage #explore #foryou #fyp #foryoupage #viral #trending #trendingnow #trendingtopic #viralreels #trendingreels #reels #reelsinstagram #interview #celebrities #blogger#instagram
This is what the post looked like on Instagram at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Fri Dec 20 16:17:27 2024 UTC)
The video shared to Instagram was originally posted on TikTok on December 18, 2024 (archived here), by the account @iceman_fox1 (archived here), a profile self-described as, "Mixed reality. Definitely not CIA." The original video shared to TikTok included the caption:
Large car sized drone spotted in Las Vegas, NV #drone #vegas #ufo #lasvegas #scifi #uab #uip ufo #spaceship #et #aliens #disclosure This video was created digitally.
Below is an embedded version of the original video shared to TikTok:
@iceman_fox1 Large car-sized drone spotted in Las Vegas, NV #drone #vegas #ufo #lasvegas #scifi #uav #uap #ufo #spaceship #et #aliens #disclosure ♬ original sound - iceman fox1
Lead Stories reached out to the FBI field office in Las Vegas. In a phone interview on December 20, 2024, the agency directed Lead Stories to a Joint Statement on Ongoing Response to Reported Drone Sightings (archived here) published with the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Defense. It read, in part:
DoD takes unauthorized access over its airspace seriously and coordinates closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities, as appropriate. Local commanders are actively engaged to ensure there are appropriate detection and mitigation measures in place.
Other Lead Stories fact checks involving drones can be read here.
