A claim that a man selling vultures allegedly as chickens for consumption in Abuja has been arrested.
The claim, which surfaced online on June 2, 2025, was posted by an X user @drpenking.
The post featured an image showing a man squatting beside an animal from the bird family, with sacks nearby from which birds’ beaks were visibly seen.
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The post alleged that the man was selling these wild birds as chicken in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The post read:
This guy was said to sell the biggest chicken thighs in Abuja. Today he was caught and it turns out he sells vultures as chicken.
It has garnered over 2.6 million views, with over 23,000 likes, more than 3,600 reposts and 2,300 comments as of June 4, 2025.
CLAIM
Image shows man arrested in Abuja for selling vultures as chickens.
THE FINDINGS
Checks by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE!
When our fact-checker conducted a Google Lens search on the image, the results led her to previous appearance of the image on X alongside a press release by the Uganda Police Force posted in 2023.
The statement noted that the incident occurred in Kiteezi and expressed concern over the illegal possession of wild species, particularly the Marabou stork, by four individuals.
They confirmed that all four suspects had been arrested and charged, and added that prosecution would follow in line with the law. This was also widely reported by local media outlets in Uganda as seen here and here.
Additionally, our researcher compared and contrast storks and vultures and noted that storks typically have long, straight beaks and fully feathered heads and necks, while vultures have hooked beaks adapted for tearing flesh and often have bald or sparsely feathered heads to stay clean while feeding.
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Further checks show that storks have sleek bodies and long legs suited for wading in water, whereas vultures are bulkier with broad wings and strong claws adapted for soaring and scavenging.
THE VERDICT
The claim that the image showed a man arrested in Abuja for selling vultures as chickens is FALSE; the incident took place in Uganda and the birds in the image were storks, not vultures.
Seasoned fact-checker and researcher Fatimah Quadri has written numerous fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy pieces for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org.
