No, an Indian national was not caught trying to set fire in Los Angeles

What is the claim?

Social media users are circulating a 47-second video in which police officers are detaining a man with the claim that he is an Indian national named “Bhuvesh Patel”, who has been booked for robbery in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles. Was caught while trying to set fire.

There is text on the video that reads, “We helped catch a guy trying to light a fire on my block.” It has surfaced on multiple social media platforms including X, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. An At the time of writing this check, the post had been viewed more than 132,000 times and had more than 1,000 shares. Archived versions of this and other similar posts can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Screenshots of such viral social media posts. (Source: Facebook/Instagram/X/Youtube/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, we found that the detained person in the viral video has been identified as a Mexican immigrant named Juan Manuel Sierra and not an Indian national named “Bhuvesh Patel”.

What are the facts?

We performed a Google search using relevant keywords and found several news reports about the incident, indicating that a man named Juan Sierra was arrested after residents of an LA neighborhood accused him of attempting to set a fire. Was doing.

A news report (archived here) published by the Los Angeles Times on January 14, 2025, states that the man, 33-year-old Juan Manuel Sierra, aka Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva, was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) on Thursday. Had done. , Sierra was caught with a blowtorch and arrested for violating felony probation after “attempting to start a fire” in the West Hills neighborhood near the location of the Kenneth fire.

Additionally, in a report by Newsweek, the arrested man was identified as Juan Manuel Sierra, which included footage from a different angle similar to the viral video. Reported video shows a man dressed in black confronting Woodland Hills residents. He is seen near a tree on the footpath before being detained by police officers.

Comparison between viral videos and newsweek videos. (Source: Modified by X/Newsweek/Logically Facts)

Additionally, both the viral and Newsweek footage show identical blue, black and green trash cans, as well as a man with long hair wearing a brown and black outfit and riding a bicycle on the road.

Comparison of viral and Newsweek videos. (Source: X/Newsweek/Modified by Logically Facts)

We also received an official statement from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirming news reports, identifying the individual as Mexican national Juan Manuel Sierra. The ICE statement, titled: “ICE Statement on the Arrest of a Person of Interest in Connection with the California Fires,” says “Juan Manuel Sierra, aka Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva, Juan Leyva, 33, Leyva Moniker and Juan Sierra, a Mexican citizen who entered the United States illegally at an unknown date and place without being inspected by an immigration official,” it said. The LAPD arrested Sierra on January 10 on felony probation violation.

Additionally, reverse image search on keyframes of viral videos led us to find several user-generated videos on social media. An Instagram user, ‘reresellsvroomvrooms’, shared this clip with similar overlaid text (archived here and here) on January 10, 2025, and said in the comments that they filmed it.

Logically Facts has reached out to ICE and LAPD for a comment, and will update this fact-check when we receive it.

Decision

According to multiple reports, the man in the viral video has been identified as Juan Manuel Sierra, a Mexican immigrant who was caught attempting to light a fire in preparation for a robbery in Woodland Hills. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has also confirmed this.

(This story was originally published by Logically Facts, and republished by NDTV as part of the Shakti Collective)

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)