The claim: A baby was abandoned in various locations
Social media users are sharing a picture they claim shows an abandoned baby in Facebook groups across the globe.
“Baby dumped at the gate of our house in Elmwood Park,” reads the caption of one Nov. 30 post (direct link, archived link). “I can’t find her parents & my neighbors have no idea how she got here, please assist me in locating her parents.”
The post garnered more than 500 shares in three days.
Other users have shared identical posts claiming the baby was found in locations such as Beloit, Wisconsin, and Plymouth, England.
The posts are a scam. Local officials told USA TODAY there have been no such reports of a baby being abandoned.
USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment.
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Identical posts are a scam
Sarah Lock, a spokesperson for the city of Beloit, told USA TODAY via email that the local police department has had no reports of an abandoned baby.
“I looked at the Facebook link and I’ve been seeing a lot of similar posts on social media where the user turns off comments to prevent others from stating that it is not credible and a scam,” said Lock.
One user previously shared a post claiming the baby was found in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, but then changed the post to an ad for a Go2Bank account. Go2Bank, also known as Green Dot Bank, has a lengthy list of complaints in an array of…
