Scripted Video Passed Off As ‘Child Kidnapping Gang on the Run’

A scripted video is being shared as a real incident of child kidnappers being busted by the public.

Fact-Check: The claim states that the video shows child kidnappers. 

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A five-minute long video, which shows two masked men being confronted by a group of people, is doing the rounds on social media with a claim that the duo was kidnapping children in their car.

The video also shows children lying in the back seat of the car. However, we found that it is a scripted video and not a real one.

A slightly longer version carries a disclaimer which mentions that the video is a work of 'fiction' and has been created for 'awareness purposes'.

CLAIM

The caption along with the viral video suggests that the two men had kidnapped the children and were going to 'sell them, but were caught before that'.

An archived version of the post can be seen here.

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)

Similar posts can be seen here and here.

The Quint also received the video on its WhatsApp tipline.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

A slightly longer version of the video showed a disclaimer, which mentioned that the video was 'complete fiction' and was made for 'awareness purpose'.

The video carried a disclaimer for being scripted.

(Source: Altered by The Quint)

It read, "This video is a complete fiction all events in the video are scripted and made for awareness purpose only this does not promote any kind of activity or defame any kind of rituals. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely conincidental. (sic)"

On conducting a keyword search on Google using 'gang kidnapping children caught' in Hindi, we came across a YouTube video by 'Social Message'.

Further, at around five minutes, a man can be heard saying that the video has been created for 'social awareness'.

The Quint scanned this channel and found that it has uploaded several scripted videos in the past.

We found another scripted video on their Facebook page posted on 8 June 2022, in which one of the men seen in the viral video could be seen.

Two different scripted videos featured the same guy in same clothes.

(Source: Altered by The Quint)

Clearly, this video is a scripted video that is being shared as a real incident of men getting caught red-handed for kidnapping children.

We have debunked several such scripted videos, which have gone viral in the pas. You can read about them here.

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at [e-mail] and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)