A distressing image of a young girl with facial injuries is being circulated with the claim that she was brutally beaten for stealing candy from an Indian store. However, this claim is completely false and misleading. This is an old image from Florida, where a five-year-old girl was attacked by a dog in Fort Lauderdale in February 2023.
Propagandist account @DelusionPosting shared a screenshot of a tweet from an account named “Whites Taking LS” with the handle “@endwokepigs.” The post contains the photo with a caption that reads, “She stole a candy from an Indian shop. Pajeet (Racist slur used against Indians) had no messy.”
Several other users, influencers and propagandists have also disseminated the claims. Their posts can be seen here: @ExcclesiaLatin, @CanisLupusDoge.
The truth about the photo of injured young girl, Fact Check
As soon as the posts containing the image and claims came to our notice. Subsequently, we conducted research and analysis of the image. We found that the girl was a victim of a dog attack, not related to a hate crime or Indians.
To verify the claims made by propagandists. We performed a reverse image search using Google Lens. This led us to several media reports containing the image of the same girl. According to reports (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), in February 2023, a distressing incident occurred at Hortt Park in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where a 5-year-old girl was severely injured in a dog attack. Moreover, according to her father, Florian Becker, the attack has left his daughter “absolutely traumatized.” Consequently, the child sustained injuries that required over 50 stitches and staples to her face, shoulders, back, and scalp.
Therefore, it is evident from verified sources that the image was related to a girl victim of a Dog attack. Nothing to do with hate crime and Indian individuals.
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— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) April 2, 2025
ANALYSIS: Misleading
FACT: A distressing image of a young girl with facial injuries is being circulated with the claim that she was brutally beaten for stealing candy from an Indian store. However, this claim is completely false and misleading. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/PR9QjRONxO
Intent
Propagandists are circulating old images with misleading claims to set their narrative against India and Indians in America.
Conclusion
Claim: An Indian shopkeeper in the USA brutally assaulted an American girl for allegedly stealing a candy.
Fact: The image shows a girl who was a victim of a dog attack, unrelated to theft, hate crimes, or Indian individuals.
