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Viral Punch publication showing Channels host Seun Okinbaloye’s arrest, digitally altered

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Claim: A Facebook user claims Channels TV host Seun Okinbaloye has been sued by CBN over interview statements.

Viral Punch publication showing Channels host Seun Okinbaloye’s arrest, digitally altered

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A Facebook user, Cafe Pedacito de Cielo, has claimed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has sued Channels’ television host, Seun Okinbaloye, over statements made during an interview on ‘With Chude.”

“Central Bank of Nigeria sues Seun Okinbaloye over statements he made on live television,” the headline of the alleged news publication reads.

In July 2024, Mr Okinbaloye was rumoured to have been sacked by his employer, Channels TV. However, the claim was false.    

The post, made on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, has already gained 633 likes and 86 comments and has been shared nine times. 

Facebook users in the comment section were curious about what he said. 

“What did he say?” Oluchi Ozoemenam inquired while Fennygud varieties stores wrote, “What did he do, please?”

Due to the post’s sensitivity and its tendency to cause harmful disinformation, DUBAWA decided to fact-check the claim.

Verification

DUBAWA conducted a Google Reverse Image on purported Punch’s front page paper and discovered that the image showing Channels TV host Mr Okinbaloye being apprehended by INTERPOL has been digitally altered.

The original image was from International Police when it arrested a Nigerian suspect, Aminu Ogwuche, in connection with the Nyanya bomb blast in Abuja in April 2014.

Viral Punch publication showing Channels host Seun Okinbaloye’s arrest, digitally altered
Screenshot of the original image of Nyanya bomb suspect Amina Ogwuche, arrested by INTERPOL in Sudan.

Both the Vanguard and Sudan Tribune news outlets reported Mr Ogwuche’s arret by INTERPOL.

DUBAWA noticed the date the purported Punch report was published, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024, and discovered that Punch newspaper never reported the alleged arrest or the suing of Mr Okinbaloye by CBN as seen on its website here, here, here, and here.

We also noticed that the publication does not have an author, and its story segments do not contain any stories, except for a cryptocurrency marketing platform called “Eclipse Earn.”

Viral Punch publication showing Channels host Seun Okinbaloye’s arrest, digitally altered
Screenshot of some of the irregularities in the purported Punch newspaper report 

Moreover, a comparison between a regular Punch publication and the purported copy by the claimant reveals certain dissimilarities.

A regular Punch publication has a date, notification icon, author, social media platforms on which it can be shared, etc., which the purported copy visibly lacks.

Viral Punch publication showing Channels host Seun Okinbaloye’s arrest, digitally altered
A collage showing obvious dissimilarities between a regular Punch publication and the purported copy posted by the claimant. 

DUBAWA reached out to Punch via email but has not gotten a response as of the time of publishing.

We also looked at video interviews on the “With Chude” programme but did not find Mr Okinbaloye’s alleged session on the show. 

We contacted Mr Okinbaloye via his Facebook handle to ask about the development, but we have not received a response from the television host. We contacted his colleague, Kayode Okiki, who dismissed the publication as a product of artificial intelligence. 

Conclusion 

All research findings indicate the publication was digitally altered; therefore, the claim is false.

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