CCTV clip of Brazil robbery falsely linked to Burmese anti-junta fighters
"Said it happened in North Dagon. I am not sure if that's true but they said a PDF saved a foreigner," reads the Burmese-language caption, referring to the People's Defence Force, which was formed after a 2021 coup that has led to four years of conflict, spurring mass displacement and poverty (archived link).
Image
Screenshot of false Facebook post taken on May 20, 2025
A devastating earthquake that struck in March killed 3,800 people and worsened the humanitarian situation, while the junta has continued to strike civilian targets despite a purported ceasefire to help the country recover from the disaster (archived links here and here).
Similar posts claiming the video of the robbery was shot in Myanmar also emerged on Facebook.
However, a reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the video found the incident took place in Brazil.
Broadcaster CNN Brasil published an uncropped version of the video in a report on March 4 (archived link).
The report's headline reads: "Video: student is robbed as he leaves the gym and off-duty police officer retaliates."
Image
Screenshot comparisons of false Facebook post (left) and CNN Brasil's report (right)
The incident took place in Sao Paulo's Brooklin neighbourhood, on Francisco Dias Velho Road, Brazilian local media reported (archived link).
A search of the location on Google Maps found a geotagged image of the exterior of the Junkyard Gym, which shows elements matching those seen in the CCTV footage of the robbery (archived link).
Image
Screenshot comparisons of CNN Brasil's report (left) and Google Maps' photo highlighted by AFP (right)
Further keyword searches found the Junkyard Gym had uploaded additional CCTV footage of the robbery on its official Instagram account, which corresponded to Google Maps street view imagery of Francisco Del Velho Road (archived links here and here).
Image
Screenshot comparison of the CCTV footage uploaded by the gym (left) and street view imagery from Google Maps (right)
AFP has previously debunked misinformation related to the PDF here, here and here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AFP
9 hours ago
- AFP
Old S.Korea killing case falsely presented as recent
"Article posted on foreign media but not in domestic newspapers," reads a Facebook post shared on August 18, 2025. It includes the screenshot of a report from The Guardian about a South Korean coastguard officer stabbed to death while seizing a Chinese boat, which the user claims was published just days prior. "Who is stopping this reporting for whose benefit? Can we really call a country seized by spies an independent nation?" the caption continues. The claim surfaced after far-right commentator Grant Newsham reposted a screenshot of the article on X, presenting it as a recent story. The original post he shared omitted the article's publication date (archived here and here). Seoul has long struggled to crack down on illegal fishing by Chinese ships in its waters, recently signing an agreement with Beijing to step up joint efforts to contain the activities (archived link). Image Screenshot of the false Facebook post, captured August 18, 2025. Red X added by AFP Similar claims were shared in Facebook groups frequented by conservative users, as well as on Ilbe, a far-right forum. Users attacked China and the South Korean media in comments left in the posts. "These trash journalists are all in the pockets of China, afraid to tell the truth," one user wrote. Another said: "China is now trying to control our eyes and ears as well." But a keyword search on Google found The Guardian published the report on December 12, 2011 (archived link). It reported Lee Cheong-ho, a 41-year-old coastguard officer, was fatally stabbed while boarding a Chinese trawler suspected of illegal fishing near Socheong Island in the Yellow Sea. Another officer was injured in the clash, and Seoul lodged a diplomatic protest with Beijing. Image Screenshot of the report from The Guardian, with publication date highlighted AFP also reported on the incident at the time, noting it was the second case in four years that a South Korean coast guard officer died in the line of duty (archived link). Contrary to the false claim, South Korean media reported on the incident widely at the time. Broadcaster KBS and the government-run KTV reported the killing the same day, while nearly all major newspapers -- including the Dong-A Ilbo and Kyunghyang Shinmun -- carried detailed accounts of the operation and its aftermath (archived here, here, here and here). AFP later reported in April 2012 that the Chinese fisherman responsible for stabbing Lee received a 30-year jail sentence in South Korea, and the case was also covered extensively by local media including the JoongAng Ilbo and Hankyoreh (archived here, here and here). Separate searches found no evidence of any similar incident in 2025. AFP previously debunked similar claims stemming from anti-Chinese sentiment in South Korea.
AFP
14 hours ago
- AFP
Video of protest outside Indonesian court falsely linked to Thai-Cambodian border clashes
"Soldiers' families gather to demand (authorities) find the missing bodies of unaccounted for Thai soldiers," reads the Khmer-language caption of a Facebook video shared on August 5, 2025. The video, which has been viewed more than 13,000 times, shows a large crowd that rushes into a two-storey building with an orange-tiled roof. It circulated after Cambodia and Thailand agreed to a truce that came into effect on July 29, ending five days of clashes on their 800-kilometre (500-mile) boundary that killed at least 43 people on both sides (archived here and here). The fighting, the latest eruption of violence in a long-standing dispute over contested border temples, also displaced more than 300,000 people. Following the truce, Thailand's deputy defence minister Nattapon Narkphanit called on Cambodia to retrieve the bodies of its fallen troops at the border and Cambodian social media users also claimed the corpses of Thai soldiers had been left at the frontier (archived here and here). Image Screenshot of the false Facebook post captured on August 16, 2025, with a red X added by AFP The footage was also shared in similar Khmer-language posts on Facebook and TikTok, as well as in a few Thai posts linking it to the border spat. But the video does not show either Thai or Cambodian protesters, and is unrelated to the recent clashes. Disinformation about the conflict has continued to spread online despite the ceasefire, with misleading visuals and emotionally fuelled falsehoods stoking fear and hatred between the neighbours (archived link). Indonesian protest A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared video led to the same clip posted on TikTok on July 31 (archived link). Its Indonesian-language caption reads, "Demonstration #MandoCourt #LandMafia". Image Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared video (left) and the July 31 TikTok clip (right) Subsequent keyword searches led to reports in local media outlets the Manado Post and Kompas TV on July 31 about hundreds of people rallying outside the Manado District Court in Indonesia's North Sulawesi province (archived here and here). According to the reports, protesters were demanding the cancellation of the court-ordered seizure of land in Wisma Sabang, a district in Manado. A similar video of the protest was also posted on the Manado Times' Instagram account on July 31 (archived link). Image Screenshot comparisons of clips from the falsely shared video (left) and the Manado Times' Instagram account (centre and right), with similarities highlighted by AFP Features in the falsely shared video -- such as a red-and-white flag and text on the building also match Google Maps photos of the Manado District Court (archived link). The flag is Indonesia's national flag and the text reads "Pengadilan Negeri", which translates as "court district". Image Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared clip (left) and the Google Maps photo (right), with corresponding elements highlighted by AFP AFP has previously debunked a similar false claim about supposed unrecovered bodies at the Thailand-Cambodia border, as well as other misinformation related to the countries' border clashes.
France 24
2 days ago
- France 24
'Pickypockets!' vigilante pairs with social media on London streets
Galdino, however, is not a policeman. The Brazilian food app delivery rider has become a popular, social media-fuelled vigilante targeting pickpocketing in the British capital. He started filming -- and then trying to disrupt -- thieves in action after witnessing several incidents. And his videos on Instagram, TikTok and other platforms under the handle "pickpocketlondon" have proved a hit. One posted late July on TikTok amassed nearly 27 million views -- another on Instagram showing a suspect spitting at him garnered more than 12 million. "I didn't know nothing about TikTok, I didn't know nothing about uploading a video," Galdino told AFP. "I catch them stealing, I catch a lot of situations and I upload daily and grow very quickly," he said. Similar accounts have emerged in other European cities including Venice and Paris, as the era of mass tourism, social media and side hustles collides with crime and vigilantism. Galdino said he was "completely surprised" by the response. "My life's changed a lot," he added. Now, he said, he was inundated with media interview requests and got recognised by supporters and suspects alike. 'Injustice' Galdino, from a family of police officers in Brazil, said he has become expert at identifying likely thieves. They appear well organised, are often women and work in pairs. They mainly target tourists, dressing like them to blend in, he said. Standing outside Buckingham Palace, the 32-year-old said he could change his "perception" while patrolling to create a kind of tunnel vision. A network of around 20 other delivery riders helps out, sending tip-offs via WhatsApp when suspects are spotted. Once on the scene, Galdino swoops in filming with an attached camera, shouting a signature "pickypockets" warning to sound the alert. "Watch out, pickypockets!" he yells. His presence is not always welcomed though, and Galdino said he had faced violence. But focus, adrenalin and a sense of "injustice" at the thefts overrode any fear, he said. "I hate this kind of thing," Galdino added. "These people get up in the morning ... (to) steal. They don't pay tax, they don't produce nothing to society." On the streets, locals as well as visitors seemed to appreciate his efforts. "Keep doing what you're doing!" said passerby Tom, 37, after recognising Galdino. "Hopefully tourists (who) come to London who maybe don't know about the phone-snatchers see your videos." Sceptics however, have raised concerns about such vigilante content-creators, arguing they are ill-trained to intervene in potentially dangerous situations. Police boost "We've got a kind of performative form of crime vigilantism for clicks," criminologist Jennifer Fleetwood told AFP. "I'm sure the guy is very well-meaning, but honestly this is not an effective form of crime control," she added. "He's not going to be out there for the next 10 years, is he?" said Fleetwood, a university lecturer in criminology who wrote the book "What We Talk About When We Talk About Crime". London's leaders insist they are tackling pickpocketing. Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan boosted police numbers in the centre to curb theft, robbery and antisocial behaviour. "We'll be targeting hotspot areas with both plain-clothed and uniformed patrols, building on the progress we've already made," the Metropolitan Police said. Their statement did not comment directly on Galdino, but it did note a 15.6 percent reduction in "theft from the person" in the six weeks since their boost began April 6. However, force's statistics show it recorded more than 32,000 "thefts from the person" in the year to July in central Westminster. That is up on the previous 12 months and a considerable increase on the year from July 2022. Fleetwood argued the social media fixation on pickpocketing risked exaggerating the problem. Statistics show such thefts are no more prevalent in the capital than other English cities and regions, she said. "I've seen so much stuff on social media about London being unfriendly or London being dangerous.
