A clip showing the capture of fugitive and Kingdom of Jesus Christ leader Apollo Quiboloy is fake and manipulated using artificial intelligence (AI).
In the nine-second Facebook (FB) reel posted on July 19, “Quiboloy” can be seen with his hands behind his back and escorted by two policemen. Referring to the bounty for his whereabouts, the video bore the text:
“Breaking News! 10M nakuha na (10 million already received).”
An uncropped version of the clip was posted on TikTok a day earlier with the same claim. Its caption read:
“Breaking si Quibs (Quibs is [on] breaking [news]). #quiboloy #quiboloylangmalakas #quiboloylatestnews #nbi #news #foryou.”
The clip is fake. Quiboloy has yet to be arrested and remains to be on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Most Wanted list in the United States (U.S.).
VERA Files Fact Check’s analysis reveals that the “video” is an altered and animated version of a photo showing a former electoral candidate in the U.S. being arrested.
The original image by photojournalist Roberto E. Rosales shows Republican Solomon Peña captured by the Albuquerque Police on Jan. 16, 2023 on charges connecting him to a series of shootings targeting Democrat lawmakers in New Mexico.
The publisher of the fake reel used AI to edit Quiboloy’s face over Peña’s and make the photo move.
Some discrepancies in the frames raised red flags on the clip’s legitimacy:
- The policemen’s hands and gun suddenly getting blurry,
- the photo grains and pant creases unnaturally disappearing after the first frame,
- Quiboloy’s shirt barely moving, and
- the inconsistent black object attached at the back of the police on the left.
VERA Files Fact Check also ran the photos in the AI-detector tools Hive Moderation and TrueMedia. Results from both programs show that the video is likely to be altered with AI.
The cheapfake circulated a week after Quiboloy’s co-accused on human trafficking charges was arrested in Davao City. The church leader faces qualified trafficking and child abuse charges.
VERA Files Fact Check has debunked another untrue claim that the cases against Quiboloy have been dropped.
The video posted by an FB user garnered 7,800 reactions, 2,900 comments, 905 shares and 2,200,000 views. The TikTok video uploaded by user @Kakathatv also garnered 9,665 reactions, 2,167 comments, 1,359 shares and 478,500 views.
