An image shared on Facebook purports to show the suspect who allegedly committed a recent stabbing in Southport, U.K.

Verdict: False

The claim is false. The image, featured in an article from the Guardian, shows a man who allegedly carried out a knife attack in the French Alps in 2023.

Fact Check:

Protests continue to occur in the U.K., with “20 gatherings and three counter-gatherings” set for August 8, according to police, Reuters reported. The protests have been spurred by claims that the suspect who allegedly committed a recent stabbing in Southport is an “Islamist migrant,” the outlet indicated.

The Facebook image purports to show the suspect who allegedly committed a recent stabbing in Southport, U.K. In the photo, a man wearing dark clothing and sunglasses appears to be carrying a knife. “Ship the lot [back],” the post’s caption reads. “Close our borders,” text overlay on the photo adds.

The claim is false. The image, featured in an article from the Guardian, shows a man who allegedly carried out a knife attack in the French Alps in 2023. According to The Guardian, the attack, which happened at a lakeside playground, left four children and two adults injured. Police detained the suspect, a Syrian man in his early 30s, for questioning, the outlet reported.

Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find the Facebook image referenced in any recent credible news reports about the stabbing. In fact, the opposite is true. On August 7, USA Today reported the claim was false. Additionally, a photo of Axel Rudakubana, the 17-year-old who allegedly committed the Southport stabbing, bears no resemblance to the man in the Facebook image. The photo of Rudakubana appears in an August 1 New York Post article highlighting the attack. (RELATED: Facebook Post Misidentifies Suspect Who Allegedly Committed Southport, U.K. Stabbings)

Furthermore, the Merseyside Police Department has neither shared the Facebook image via its website nor its associated social media accounts.

Rudakubana is accused of killing three young children and wounding 10 other people at a dance class in Southport, according to the same New York Post article. The attack was allegedly committed using a “kitchen knife with a curved blade,” the outlet indicated.

Check Your Fact has contacted the Merseyside Police Department for comment.