A video shared on Facebook claims to show a police officer in Manchester, U.K., who was purportedly stabbed by an African immigrant.
Verdict: False
The claim is false. The original video, shared on YouTube, indicates an acid attack occurred at the Piccadilly bus station. On Aug. 8, the Manchester Evening News reported police descended on the Piccadilly Gardens after a substance was thrown at a bus driver.
Fact Check:
The U.K. government has “activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding” amid ongoing riots happening in the country, according to BBC News. The riots were prompted by false claims that the perpetrator of a recent stabbing in Southport was an Islamist migrant, Reuters reported.
The Facebook video claims to show a police officer in Manchester, U.K., who was purportedly stabbed by an African immigrant. In the video, the officer can be seen lying on the ground. Text and an arrow that’s been superimposed into the video claims the officer has been stabbed. As the video continues, other officers can be seen appearing to detain a suspect inside a nearby building.
According to the video’s caption, “the mainstream media didn’t report [on the alleged incident] and didn’t say the attacker was an immigrant.”
The claim is false. While the original video, shared on YouTube, does show a police officer lying on the ground and fellow officers detaining an alleged suspect, there is no mention of a stabbing having occurred. According to the video’s caption, an attack purportedly occurred at the Piccadilly bus station in which acid was thrown at a bus driver.
Using a keyword search, Check Your Fact found an Aug. 8 article from the Manchester Evening News indicating police descended on the Piccadilly Gardens “after a substance was ‘thrown at a bus driver.’” According to the same article, the substance was tested and was “found not to be corrosive or noxious.” (RELATED: Viral X Image Purporting To Show U.K. Police Bowing To Muslims Is AI-Generated)
Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find any credible news reports to support the Facebook video’s claim that a stabbing occurred. In fact, the opposite is true. On Aug. 13, U.K.-based outlet Full Fact reported the claim was false. The outlet referenced an Aug. 8 statement from the Greater Manchester Police confirming an incident involving a liquid, not a stabbing, took place.
“#UPDATE | At around 2.20pm, officers responded to reports of an assault in Piccadilly Gardens. It was established that a man had a liquid thrown at him, which was tested and confirmed negative for acid or noxious substances. Anyone with information should contact police on 101,” the statement, shared via the social media platform X, reads.
Check Your Fact contacted the Greater Manchester Police in regard to the Facebook video, but they declined to comment.