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Claim: A Facebook page posted an image purportedly showing Liberian Vice President Jeremiah Koung being undressed by airport security in Belgium.
Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s investigation showed that the photo is AI-generated.
Full text
Amidst Liberia’s ongoing crackdown on narcotics trafficking and substance abuse, an online blog, Yekeh Kolubah’s blog, posted an image on Facebook, claiming it shows Liberian Vice President Jeremiah Koung being undressed by airport security personnel for inspection in Belgium.
The user said Belgian airport security officers disgraced the vice-president by removing his coat, shoes, and belt as part of routine airport security checks.
DUBAWA observed a series of posts on the page about the alleged incident, as seen here and here. These posts generated hundreds of reactions, comments, and shares, with many comments referring to the vice president as a criminal.
Screenshot of the comments
Because of the claim’s sensitivity and the person involved, DUBAWA verified the image.
Verification
DUBAWA ran the photo through an AI image detection tool and found it was AI-generated.
Analysis from the Fake Image Detector, an advanced manipulated image detection tool, shows that the photo was computer-generated or modified by 80 per cent.
Screenshot of the analysis
DUBAWA also checked the official websites of other credible local news media organisations and found no such photo of the Vice President.
In further verification, DUBAWA contacted the office of the Vice President to ascertain the veracity of the claim; the office informed the Researcher that the Vice President would respond.
A few minutes after DUBAWA’s engagement, the Vice President took to his official Facebook page to clarify the circumstances surrounding his trip.
In the post, VP Koung denied being undressed by the airport security. He also denied that his shoes or clothes were removed, as claimed. He said he took the regular route everyone uses because he wanted to pick up a few things from duty-free stores for his daughter.
“This trip, I chose to use the regular route that everyone uses to pick up a few things for my daughter from the duty-free stores, and again there are discussions. No shoes, no jacket was removed,” he stated.
Screenshot of his post
Conclusion
The claim is false. The image posted on Facebook purportedly showing Vice President Jeremiah Koung being undressed is AI-generated.