Claim: A video shows an April 2024 mugging incident wherein a woman and her elderly mother were robbed in broad daylight.
Fact: The video is not recent. It is, in fact, from November 2022.
On 18 April 2024, conservative Pakistani columnist Orya Maqbool Jan shared (archive) closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage of a mugging. The video shows a robber snatching valuables off a woman walking with her mother, who is in a wheelchair.
The impact of the incident seems to send both women on the ground before the younger one futilely attempts to run after the dacoit.
Implying that the incident is recent, Orya Maqbool Jan captioned the clip as follows:
“جس ملک میں ساری انتظامی مشنری ، پولیس اور پیرا ملٹری فورسز عمران خان اور پی ٹی آئی کے پیچھے رات دن پڑی ہوں اور عوام کو ڈاکؤؤں اور چوروں کے رحم وکرم پر چھوڑ دیا ہو ، وہاں ایسے ہی دل دہلا دینے والے منظر دیکھنے کو ملیں گے ۔ میرا اللہ کی دکھیاروں کو دیکھ رہا ہے، اس کی پکڑ بہت سخت ہے
[In a country where all the administrative machinery, police, and the paramilitary forces have been after Imran Khan and PTI day and night and have left the people at the mercy of dacoits and thieves, one would obviously see such heart-rending scenes. My Allah is watching the sufferings [of people] and His grip [accountability] is very tight.]”
Soch Fact Check has debunked multiple claims by the Pakistani columnist here, here, here, and here.
The Imran Khan fiasco
Former prime minister and founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, was first arrested (archive) on 9 May 2023 on the orders of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) over charges of corruption in the Al-Qadir Trust case (archive). His detention triggered violent, country-wide protests and he was released (archive) a few days later after the Supreme Court of Pakistan intervened.
The former PM was arrested (archive) and imprisoned for a second time on 5 August 2023, after a court ruled his “dishonesty [was] established beyond doubt” in the Toshakhana case. He has been incarcerated since then.
In January 2024, just a month ahead of the 2024 general elections in Pakistan, Khan was sentenced for a total of 31 years over charges of corruption, leaking state secrets, and an un-Islamic marriage, according to these reports (archived here and here).
Related: Pakistani columnist shares fake letter claiming American NGO is funding Opposition parties
Yet he declared victory in a speech generated by artificial intelligence (AI), with 93 of the 264 seats secured by the independent candidates backed by the PTI. The party of his main opponent, PML-N Supremo Nawaz Sharif, got 75 seats, with the former premier, too, claiming that he won.
The National Assembly of Pakistan convened (archive) its maiden session on 29 February 2024, despite the PTI claiming that the 2024 general elections were rigged. On 4 March, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif was elected (archive) the country’s prime minister after beating PTI-backed candidate, Omar Ayub Khan.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check observed that some X users had pointed out that the video is old here, here, and here. We searched for news articles using the phrase “ڈاکو معذور خاتون وہیل چیئر [Dacoit handicapped woman wheelchair]”.
The official X account of Lahore Police also responded (archive) to Orya Maqbool Jan with a copy of the first information report (FIR), writing:
“محترم یہ واقعہ 10.11.2022 کو پیش آیا جس پر مقدمہ نمبر 3545/22 بجرم 356 تعزیرات پاکستان پولیس اسٹیشن اقبال ٹاؤن میں درج ہے [Respected, this incident took place on 10.11.2022, based on which [FIR] Case No. 3545/22 under Section 356 of the Penal Code is registered in the Iqbal Town Police Station.]”
Also read: Old video of Rawalpindi mugging falsely linked to Karachi street crime
We also came across a report (archive) on Express News’ Urdu website published on 10 November 2022 with the title “لاہور میں ڈاکو نے وہیل چیئر پر معذور ماں اور بیٹی کو بھی نہ بخشا [Bandit in Lahore did not even spare a disabled mother on a wheelchair and her daughter]”. It carries screenshots from the same clip that is now viral.
Soch Fact Check found one of the viral X posts (archive) carrying the video in another news report (archive) dated 11 November 2022. This clip is uncropped and displays “11-10-2022” as the original date the CCTV footage was recorded.
In the comments of the aforementioned X post, we found a 10 November 2022 response (archive) by the Lahore Capital City Police that says:
“محترم، واقعہ کا مقدمہ درج ہے ، سی سی ٹی وی کیمروں سمیت تمام وسائل بروئے کار لائے جا رہے ہیں ، ملزم جلد قانون کی گرفت میں ہو گا۔
[Respected, the case of the incident is registered, all resources, including CCTV cameras, are being used, the accused will soon be caught.]”
Read more: 2009 video of ATM mugging in Karachi viral on social media
Therefore, Soch Fact Check concludes that the video is not recent and even predates the first time Imran Khan was arrested in May 2023.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found the video on multiple platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
The clip was shared here and here on Facebook. On YouTube, it was posted here.
Conclusion: The video of a woman and her mother getting mugged is not recent. It is, in fact, from November 2022.
Background image in cover photo: David von Diemar
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