DigitEye India Fact Checkers
As coronavirus in China is spreading fast forcing the country to impose lockdown, here is a video that is going viral on WhatsApp claiming that the Chinese police are strict in restraining those with symptoms not to escape.
The video shows several officers of the Chinese SWAT team stop a car and then the driver wearing a face-mask is asked to step out. He gets down from car, removes mask and spits on road — all clear indications of spreading coronavirus intentionally. It further shows how he is caught and taken away by the commandoes wearing blue Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits.
The video is widely circulating on social media with the claim that it shows the treatment of coronavirus victims in China. Queries over its authenticity made many to go for fact checking the video to realise the truth. See on such message on Twitter:
Extraordinary. SWAT teams take down coronavirus suspects on China highway.
This was a WA forward: @AltNews @boomlive_in can you verify authenticity? pic.twitter.com/2CyC5fFrRp
— PKR | প্রশান্ত | پرشانتو (@prasanto) February 24, 2020
Fact check
When Digiteye India checked the video for authenticity, it turned out to be a misleading video. As a first step, a general search on Youtube using strings — China+Swat+ coronavirus — has thrown the result of the same video but as a news that it was a mock drill. It was widely reported by international media.
A February 25 NBC News video, for instance, reported clearly that it was a mock drill by police in China’s Henan province showing how they are prepared to deal with drivers who ignore virus checkpoints following the lockdown.
This is not the first time that such a video relating to a mock drill was shared widely on social media. Earlier, Digiteye India debunked such video related to a police drill in Warangal in Telanagana.
Conclusion: Our rating of the claim is Misrepresentation ???.
