Fake or real? A hamster purchase photo, allegedly in the context of the corona virus, went viral on social networks and triggered speculation. It is now clear where and how it came about.
- Odd photo goes viral: man with respirator makes hamster purchase.
- He is also filmed as he drives away.
- The photo was by no means taken in Cologne . We clarify.
Cologne / Innsbruck - On Facebook and in WhatsApp groups , a photo goes viral, which looks like a cheap end-time film: A man is wearing an oversized respirator , disposable gloves and a thick jacket. In this elevator, he was photographed loading crates of tins and bulk packs of bag soups onto the cash register belt - his shopping cart is overflowing with jam, vegetables in glasses and sweets. Everything you need to survive a quarantine lasting several weeks!
The photo goes viral on social networks. Among other things, the account "Cologne - our city love" shared it with the hashtags #cologne and # Kreis-Heinsberg , the place where a new infection chain of the corona virus broke out. And the users begin to speculate: That should not have been in Cologne, but in Geilenkirchen in the Heinsberg district. Or: isn't the photo old? The establishment of the discounter looks old-fashioned!
Hamster buying coronavirus? Research shows: Photo was probably not taken in Germany
If you take a closer look, you will see billboards in the background of the picture - and they don't have the logo of the German discounter Aldi * (which the yellow floor tiles suggest), but the logo of the Austrian discounter Hofer .
And indeed: The Austrian portal Mimikama.at, which tries to clear up Internet myths, already wants to know that the photo was taken in Tyrol - more precisely in Innsbruck - there are already several infected people in Austria. The man is said to have even been spotted in several supermarkets. And there was supposedly a video of how he tried to transport several large packs of toilet paper with a small scooter and even landed roughly on the floor - this video is also on Facebook .
Video: Do I have to stock up on the Corona Virus now?
Hamster buying coronavirus? The alleged photographer can tell more
After the man who originally wanted the photo discovered his picture on several social networks, the Austrian newspaper Kurier.at reached him. And the photographer can tell you more about it: he was standing behind the man at the cash register and was able to observe that the man was very nervous. Even his gloves are said to be torn when he loaded the cash register. Although only the hamster buyer himself could say whether the action was a carnival joke or not, the photographer believes the man was actually serious.
It is therefore almost certain that the photo was not reproduced and not a fake, but current and real. The connection to Corona * is not officially known, but should be fairly obvious. One can only wish the buyer that he has brought his booty safely home - and that the mask * also kept tight on the scooter.
It is doubtful whether hamster purchases are already necessary in Austria or Germany at this time. But it is now clear that the corona virus consequences can also be clearly felt in German business and industry. Covid19 has a firm grip on the Dax in Frankfurt.
kat
* Merkur.de is part of the Germany-wide Ippen-Digital editors network.
