Old video of a police raid is incorrectly linked to U.K. riots

What's being claimed?

A video of police officers sawing through a red door and barging into a house has been shared online alongside claims it shows police arresting people who took part in the recent riots in the U.K.

An Instagram user shared the video (archived here) with the caption, "Arrest going on in Manchester for people that participate in the protests." An archive of a similar post is here. The same video was also shared on X (formerly Twitter) with a different narrative, claiming that the U.K. police are arresting people for posting misinformation about the ongoing protest on social media. Archives of such posts are here and here.

Screenshots of the viral posts shared online. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The video has emerged after police in the U.K. began arresting people for allegedly inciting racial hatred in relation to the recent riots. A Birmingham man was arrested on August 7, 2024, as part of investigations into "social media rumors about protests." 

The riots in the U.K. started as misinformation spread about the accused, who allegedly fatally stabbed three girls during a dance event in Southport on June 29, 2024. 

However, the now-viral video shows Manchester police conducting house raids of alleged drug dealers in May 2024. It is unrelated to the ongoing riots in the U.K.

Here are the facts

Through a reverse image search, we found that the same video was posted on the TikTok account "ghrnews" (Greatest Hits Radio news) (archived here) on May 14, 2024. It was captioned: "🚨WATCH | Over 300 Greater Manchester Police officers have executed 22 warrants across #GreaterManchester this morning. It's part of #OperationVulcan which is infiltrating drug gangs operating in and around Piccadilly Gardens." We found the same video on YouTube, posted on May 15, 2024, by Scarcity Studio (archived here). 

Screenshot of the GHR news video. (Source: TikTok)

Further, we looked for reports of Manchester police conducting Operation Vulcan in Piccadilly Gardens. A Greater Manchester Police press release (archived here) dated May 14, 2024, reports that Operation Vulcan, an undercover police operation, was conducted. Nearly 300 officers from the police executed 23 warrants at various homes throughout Greater Manchester. A total of 22 men and two women were detained on suspicion of being involved in the supply of class A substances. The Greater Manchester Police YouTube channel (archived here) posted a video from Operation Vulcan conducted on May 14, 2024, showing police barging into a home. 

The BBC also reported that during the May 14 raid, police arrested a man who was trying to escape over a fence. 

The verdict

The video of police raiding the homes of suspected drug dealers on May 14, 2024, has been falsely linked to U.K. riots. It predates the ongoing riots in various places in the U.K.