Police in Karachi have claimed to have arrested a suspect, Farhan Asif, accused of wrongfully identifying the perpetrator of a stabbing incident that involved three young girls in Southport, UK, which led to widespread violent protests.
Following the knife attack, law enforcement agencies in Pakistan began investigating claims that misinformation related to the attacks originated from a website linked to the South Asian country.
Recent developments have emerged as DIG Operations in Lahore Faisal Kamran confirmed that Asif has been taken into custody and would be handed over to the Federal Investigation Agency for further investigation.
According to Kamran, the suspect works for a news platform in Pakistan and faces allegations of misidentifying the killer of the three girls in the UK. Police have referred him to the FIA’s Cyber Crime Wing for further action.
Recent reports from UK media highlighted an unverified platform, Channel3Now, as the source of misinformation claiming that a 17-year-old suspect of British descent was a Muslim immigrant who arrived in the UK by boat.
In response, the Lahore DIG Kamran stated that they were reviewing claims made by UK broadcaster ITV News and have initiated an investigation.
There has been no confirmation regarding formal communications between the two governments on the matter. But sources in local law enforcement indicated that the individual identified in the ITV report “was a freelancer working for the website and aggregates crime-related news from the UK and the US, republishing it for clicks and advertising revenue.”
The BBC has tracked several individuals associated with Channel3Now, identifying the platform as one that “aggregates crime news, sensationalizes it, and profits from it.” The site reportedly employs freelancers from multiple countries, including Pakistan and India.
The investigation revealed that individuals behind Channel3Now hail from Pakistan, Canada, and the United States. One person, identifying himself as Kevin, disclosed that over “30 people” work for the site across the US, UK, Pakistan, and India, all in freelance roles.
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An interview published by ITV with Asif, based in Lahore and working for Channel3Now, described him as a “key player in a network of news websites promoting falsehoods.”
According to ITV, Channel3Now projects itself as an American-style TV channel focused solely on sensational news stories. In contrast, the BBC cited Kevin stating that Asif was not involved in the false narrative surrounding Southport, for which the news site publicly apologised, blaming a “UK-based team” for the incident.
