Pakistan police charge man with cyber terrorism over misinformation that led to riots in UK

Pakistani man arrested for cyber terrorism in U.K. rioting, spreading misinformation about stabbing suspect on social media.

Pakistani police have arrested a man and charged him with cyber terrorism for his alleged role in spreading misinformation that led to widespread rioting in the U.K. earlier this month, a senior police investigator said Wednesday (August 21, 2024).

“The suspect was identified as Farhan Asif (32), a freelance web developer, “ said Imran Kishwar, deputy inspector general of investigations in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province.

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The man is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook about the British teenage suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three girls and injured 10 other people on July 29, 2024 at a dance class in Northwest England.

The false information claimed that the suspect was a recently arrived asylum-seeker and had a name that suggested the teen was Muslim.

After the misinformation led to a violent mob attacking a mosque near the site of the stabbing the next day, police took the unusual step of clarifying that the suspect was born in the U.K. It’s been widely reported in British media that his parents are from Rwanda and said to have Christian beliefs.

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