Lahore police on Tuesday arrested Farhan Asif, a Pakistani man accused of inciting violent riots in the UK through fake news.
According to DIG Operations, Farhan Asif was detained in Defence, Lahore. The suspect has been handed over to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for further investigation.
DIG Operations stated that Farhan Asif is employed by a news platform in Pakistan. He is accused of spreading false information about the identity of the perpetrator responsible for the deaths of three girls in the UK.
Various media reports have indicated that violent protests erupted in the UK due to the fake news. These protests caused significant chaos in multiple cities across the country.
In early August, anti-immigration protesters reportedly threw stones at police near a mosque in Sunderland, set a car on fire, and ignited a building near a police station.
Recent reports aired by UK media identified a little-known platform, Channel3Now, as being the source of the disinformation that claimed the British-born 17-year-old suspect was a Muslim immigrant, who had arrived in the UK on a boat.
