FACT CHECK: Did CBS News Tweet About Two People Being Arrested For Helping The Buffalo Shooter?

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

An image shared on Facebook allegedly shows a tweet from CBS News regarding the arrest of two individuals who allegedly provided weapons, ammunition and body armor to the accused Buffalo supermarket shooter. 

Verdict: False

The Twitter account is unaffiliated with CBS News. The two men mentioned in the post are YouTube personalities who have no known connection to the Buffalo shooting suspect.

Fact Check: 

An 18-year-old gunman shot and killed 10 people at a Tops supermarket in Buffalo, New York on Saturday, according to The New York Times. An image shared on Facebook claims he was aided in his attack by two other men.

The image shows what appears to be a screenshot of a tweet from “CBS New Zealand” that reads, “Two individuals arrested in connection with the #Buffalo mass shooting: Dimitri Potapoff (top), and Richard McWingo (bottom), were arrested by Buffalo law enforcement on Sunday. They allegedly provided weapons, ammunition, and body armor for the shooter.” The tweet includes images of the alleged suspects. 

The Twitter account that shared the post does not appear to be affiliated with CBS News. The account is not verified and has less than 200 followers. Its tweets are all false claims about the second man identified as McWingo. (RELATED: Viral Rumor Falsely Claims The Taliban Killed A Specific CNN Journalist In Afghanistan)

There is no evidence that the men pictured in the tweet are connected to the shooting in Buffalo. A reverse image search found that the first man is Kyle Myers, a YouTuber known as FPS Russia who showcases high-powered weapons and firearms. The mug shot of Myers featured in the post stems from his 2017 arrest on drug charges, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.

The second man is YouTube streamer Jordie Jordan, who is better known as WingsofRedemption online. None of Jordan’s videos on his page make any reference to Buffalo, nor did he post any content related to the shooting on his Twitter account. There are no credible news reports linking either man to the shooting.

Check Your Fact reached out to CBS News for comment and will update this article if a response is provided.

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
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