DisinformationGender & SGBVNews

Factcheck: No, She Was Not Arrested For Raping A 4-Year Old Boy

Claim: A news report circulating on social media and published by different blogs claims that a lady with the name, Esther Emmanuel, (picture above), a 24-year old maid, was arrested by the police in Rivers State on February, 26, 2020, for allegedly raping four-year-old boy.

The picture of the woman trended on Twitter and was shared widely on WhatsApp. It was also translated to a foreign language medium.

Verdict: False

Fact: Fact-checkers at HumAngle found out that the story is false; using available fact-checking tools.


The result of the fact-check showed that the picture of the woman had been circulating on social media for about nine months – since September, 2019.

The picture appeared on other news sources and identified the woman as Nzuba Ekene who faked to be blind and was arrested in Ekiti State for trafficking a 10-year old girl.

Another fact-checker contacted the Police Public Relation Officer, Rivers State Command, who said he was not aware of the arrest.


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Aliyu Dahiru

Aliyu is an Assistant Editor at HumAngle and Head of the Radicalism and Extremism Desk. He has years of experience researching misinformation and influence operations. He is passionate about analysing jihadism in Africa and has published several articles on the topic. His work has been featured in various local and international publications.

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