Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested

The woman accused of being first to spread the fake rumours about the Southport killer which sparked nationwide riots has been arrested.

Racist riots spread across the country after misinformation spread on social media claiming the fatal stabbing was carried out by Ali Al-Shakati, believed to be a fictitious name, a Muslim aslyum seeker who was on an MI6 watchlist.

A 55-year-old woman from Chester has now been arrested on suspicion of publishing written material to stir up racial hatred, and false communication. She remains in police custody.

Chief Superintendent Alison Ross said: ‘We have all seen the violent disorder that has taken place across the UK over the past week, much of which has been fuelled by malicious and inaccurate communications online.

‘It’s a stark reminder of the dangers of posting information on social media platforms without checking the accuracy.

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‘It also acts as a warning that we are all accountable for our actions, whether that be online or in person.’

While she has not been named in the police statement about the arrest, it is believed to be Bonnie Spofforth, a mother-of-three and the managing director of a clothing company.

Spofforth, 55, posted the false claim at 4.49pm on Monday, July 29, the day of the attack, saying: ‘Ali Al-Shakati was the suspect, he was an asylum seeker who came to the UK by boat last year and was on an MI6 watch list. If this is true, then all hell is about to break loose.’

The businesswoman, who lives in a £1.5million farmhouse in Cheshire, told MailOnline she ‘first received this information from somebody in Southport’.

‘I’m mortified that I’m being accused of this. I did not make it up’, she said.

‘My post had nothing to do with the violence we’ve seen across the country.

‘But I acknowledge that it may have been the source for the information used by a Russian news website.’

Spofforth posted the claim on social media just hours after Bebe King, six, Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were stabbed to death at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.

Axel Rudakubana, a 17-year-old born in Cardiff, has been charged with their murder, along with 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place.

But Spofforth’s false claim rapidly spread on social media after being shared by Russian outlet RT and Andrew Tate.

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It gained an estimated 27million impressions in a single day, according to disinformation researcher Marc Owen Jones, an associate professor at Doha’s Hamid bin Khalifa University.

A riot broke out after a vigil in Southport the following day, with a mosque being a primary target of the violence.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested

Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested

Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested

Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested

Woman who first shared fake Southport suspect rumour that sparked riots arrested