Twitter trolls use #HarveyLootCrew to spread disinformation

ByCraig Haley

Twitter has been ablaze with a series of photos and posts with the hashtag HarveyLootCrew that attempt to portray out-of-control looting during Hurricane Harvey by members of the black community or Black Lives Matter.

However many of these photos have turned out to be fake in an attempt to stir racial hatred and fear amidst the rescue attempts and rebuilding in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

In most cases, fake or “troll” Twitter accounts tweeted older photos showing looters from previous years or in different situations and claimed they were taken recently during Hurricane Harvey.

For example…

This photo actually shows looting in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014.


Sponsored Content. Continued below...




This photo wasn’t even taken in the United States, rather the UK during the London riots in 2011

This photo actually shows a fight that occurred during the notorious Black Friday sales in 2015.

This photo was taken during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

As with nearly all major hurricanes that make land and cause substantial damage in the United States, there has indeed been instances of looting and storm related crimes in the week following Hurricane Harvey, though not to the extent that these fake Twitter trolls are trying to portray.

The Harris County office estimated around 63 arrests from the day after the storm hit to September 1st. However there has been no confirmation on the demographics of the looters, their ethnicity or whether any or most were affiliated with the Black Lives Matter cause.

Keep up-to-date with all our latest articles. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Continued below...


Thanks for reading! But before you go… as part of our latest series of articles on how to earn a little extra cash using the Internet (without getting scammed) we have been looking into how you can earn gift vouchers (like Amazon vouchers) using reward-per-action websites such as SwagBucks. If you are interested we even have our own sign-up code to get you started. Want to learn more? We discuss it here. (Or you can just sign-up here and use code Nonsense70SB when registering.)

Become a Facebook Supporter. For 0.99p (~$1.30) a month you can become a Facebook fan, meaning you get an optional Supporter Badge when you comment on our Facebook posts, as well as discounts on our merchandise. You can subscribe here (cancel anytime.)