A viral video claims to show a Buffalo Walmart being looted, but it was not taken in the middle of this year’s deadly winter storm.
Since Dec. 24, Buffalo, New York and surrounding areas received over four feet of snow in some places. More than 30 people were confirmed dead in the blizzard.
Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said during the storm looting was reported in the city and arrests were made, VERIFY reported WGRZ partner station.
At least one store in town has been condemned to prevent further damage.
Some online videos claim to show shocking scenes of looting. One video, in particular, purporting to show a scene of looting in Buffalo, has gone viral. The video shows the interior of a Walmart store, with shelves cleared and product boxes scattered throughout the store.
THE QUESTION
Is this a viral video of a looted Walmart in Buffalo in December 2022?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, this video is not of Buffalo during the winter storm. She was taken at a Walmart Supercenter in Philadelphia in October 2020.
WHAT WE FOUND
This 18-second video shows a ransacked Walmart, but it’s not Buffalo, New York during the storm. The video was originally taken in October 2020 and shows a looted Walmart in the Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia.
According to 2020 local reportsseveral businesses were looted amid protests following the shooting involving an officer of Walter Wallace Jr.
The Walmart Supercenter is located near the intersection of Castor and Aramingo Avenues, and the Philadelphia Police Department on October 1. On February 27, 2020, confirmed that there had been looting in the area.
Using video and photo forensic tools to confirm the location of the looted Walmart, VERIFY found a video of the same Walmart posted by photographer and freelance journalist Brendan Gutenschwager on October 15. October 28, 2020. According to the YouTube description, Gutenschwager took the video on October 28, 2020. 27.
VERIFY matched the objects in each video, the one posted in 2020 and the video posted in December 2022, and confirmed that they show the same location and looting scene. Gutenschwager also confirmed to VERIFY that the videos are from the same event.
For example, at the start of the viral video, Sterilite boxes can be seen open and price signs are in the background, with prices of $15.97, $19.97 and $4.97 clearly visible. The same price boxes and signs can be seen at 1:45 of Philadelphia’s Gutenschwager 2020 video.
At 15 seconds into the viral video, a price sign for $5.97 can be seen enclosed in a white cage-like structure in the middle of the aisle. The same sign and hallway can be seen at the 1:41 second mark in the video posted in October 2020.
Gutenschwager also posted several other shorter clips of it inside the store on his Twitter account.
From Dec. On the 27th, there were no confirmed reports of Walmart looting in the Buffalo area. VERIFY has reached out to Walmart for comment, but did not hear back at press time.
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