PARTLY FALSE: This is not a leopard at Nairobi’s Runda EstateThe image is of a leopard in Mumbai, India. This Facebook post with an image of a leopard purportedly sighted at Nairobi’s Runda estate is PARTLY FALSE.
The post reads, “There is a leopard on the loose in Runda.”
The image’s text reads: “Runda/Rosslyn friends…make sure your doggos are kept inside at night. Leopard on the loose north side of Kurura Forest.”
The message further adds that the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) was informed of the leopard sighting, and that two goats have allegedly been killed in the area.
Runda estate is pinned as the location on the image.
A reverse image search on Google Lens established that the claim image is of a leopard photographed in India.
The image was featured in an article dated 8 March 2018, with the headline, “Leopards that live in cities are protecting people from rabies.”
According to the article, the image was taken by National Geographic’s photojournalist Steve Winter in Mumbai, India.
Winter shared the image on Instagram in a post reading, “Shot for my @natgeo leopard story — A leopard takes his daily walk on a trail with an apartment building behind — in Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Mumbai, India.”
The image was also published on the photographer’s website.
The photograph has been featured in other articles on leopards living in cities over the years.
Charles Musyoki, the Director of Wildlife and Community Service at KWS told PesaCheck that they received information on the alleged leopard spotted in Runda, and sent responders to the area. But as of 11 June 2024, they had not yet seen the alleged animal.
“The photo in question was taken in India. However, when we received this information we dispatched first responders to Runda who combed the entire area and laid a trap. To date no leopard has been sighted,” Musyoki said.
“We remain vigilant and call upon the residents to report any sighting to us. KWS is committed to protecting people and their property,” Musyoki added.
PesaCheck has looked into a Facebook post with an image of a leopard purportedly sighted at Nairobi’s Runda estate, and finds it to be PARTLY FALSE.
This post is part of an ongoing series of PesaCheck fact-checks examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.
By partnering with Facebook and similar social media platforms, third-party fact-checking organisations like PesaCheck are helping to sort fact from fiction. We do this by giving the public deeper insight and context to posts they see in their social media feeds.
Have you spotted what you think is fake or false information on Facebook? Here’s how you can report. And, here’s more information on PesaCheck’s methodology for fact-checking questionable content.
This fact-check was written by PesaCheck fact-checker Peris Gachahi and edited by PesaCheck senior copy editor Mary Mutisya.
The article was approved for publication by PesaCheck managing editor Doreen Wainainah.
PesaCheck is East Africa’s first public finance fact-checking initiative. It was co-founded by Catherine Gicheru and Justin Arenstein, and is being incubated by the continent’s largest civic technology and data journalism accelerator: Code for Africa. It seeks to help the public separate fact from fiction in public pronouncements about the numbers that shape our world, with a special emphasis on pronouncements about public finances that shape government’s delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) public services, such as healthcare, rural development and access to water / sanitation. PesaCheck also tests the accuracy of media reportage. To find out more about the project, visit pesacheck.org.
PesaCheck is an initiative of Code for Africa, through its innovateAFRICA fund, with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie, in partnership with a coalition of local African media and other civic watchdog organisations.
Are they lying? Kenya’s 1st fact-checking initiative verifies statements by public figures. A @Code4Kenya and @IBP_Kenya initiative, supported by @Code4Africa.
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