FALSE: These images do not show a boy who was arraigned for hacking into a Swiss bank
A reverse image search shows that the boy had been arraigned on a charge of first-degree murder.
A Facebook post with images claiming to show a boy being arraigned for hacking the computer system of a Swiss bank and transferring money to his father’s account is FALSE.
The post contains a collage consisting of three different images of the boy in court. It adds that during the alleged heist, the 11-year-old-boy transferred $75 billion to his father’s account.
However, a reverse image search reveals that the said boy was arraigned for a different crime contrary to what the post in question claims.
Search results show that the image was published by many news outlets including napavalleyregister.com, buffalonews.com, and scnow.com under a headline that reads ‘Caldwell shooting’.
The caption of the image identifies the boy as Zachary Neagle, adding that he was photographed making his first appearance in court at the Canyon County in Caldwell, Idaho, on a charge of first-degree murder.
The caption also states that the boy is 14 years old and not 11 as claimed. The image, which was taken on 20 May 2009, is credited to photographer Mike Vogt, the Associated Press, and Idaho Press-Tribune.
A further internet search shows that the boy was accused of shooting his sleeping father dead with a high-powered rifle. He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, was sentenced to seven years in prison, and released on probation five years later.
PesaCheck has looked into a Facebook post with images claiming to show a boy being arraigned for hacking the computer system of a Swiss bank and transferring money to his father’s account, and finds it to be FALSE.
This post is part of an ongoing series of PesaCheck fact-checks examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.
By partnering with Facebook and similar social media platforms, third-party fact-checking organisations like PesaCheck are helping to sort fact from fiction. We do this by giving the public deeper insight and context to posts they see in their social media feeds.
Have you spotted what you think is fake news or false information on Facebook? Here’s how you can report. And, here’s more information on PesaCheck’s methodology for fact-checking questionable content.
This fact-check was written by PesaCheck fact-checker Simon Muli and edited by PesaCheck deputy editor Rose Lukalo. The article was approved for publication by managing editor Enock Nyariki.
PesaCheck is East Africa’s first public finance fact-checking initiative. It was co-founded by Catherine Gicheru and Justin Arenstein, and is being incubated by the continent’s largest civic technology and data journalism accelerator: Code for Africa. It seeks to help the public separate fact from fiction in public pronouncements about the numbers that shape our world, with a special emphasis on pronouncements about public finances that shape government’s delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) public services, such as healthcare, rural development and access to water/sanitation. PesaCheck also tests the accuracy of media reportage. To find out more about the project, visit pesacheck.org.
PesaCheck is an initiative of Code for Africa, through its innovateAFRICA fund, with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie, in partnership with a coalition of local African media and other civic watchdog organisations.
