The cases of COVID-19 are rising. Even though vaccines are on a rollout in many countries, the challenges to curb the further spread of the virus is only increasing. In the middle of the ongoing global health crisis, there has been an unfortunate rise of sharing fake claims that only creates panic among the already stressed masses. Likewise, a video goes viral on social media that shows a man tossing money in the middle of a street in New York City. The clip goes on with the claim that he was throwing the money in memory of his friend who died of COVID-19, and his act was the dying man’s final wish. But the claim is false and is spreading online, misleading netizens. In this article, know the truth behind the fake viral video.

The video in question has been doing rounds on social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter, for a few days now. The clip shows a man throwing money at bystanders in New York Times Square. The video caption translated in English states, “In New York City, USA, a person died of corona. Before death he left a large amount and entrusted his friend to throw away all the money on the road so that people can understand that money does not matter in front of health.”

Man Tosses Money in Memory of His Friend Who Died of COVID-19?

The claim is misleading and was fact-checked by several media outlets, including AFP. The video was originally published on YouTube on an account for the New York-based jewellery store TraxNYC on March 21, 2021. The caption reads, “Free CASH MONEY For The People in TIME SQUARE! In Memory of my friend: RIP Joe KUSH.” The description adds in part, “Lost a great friend, great customer one year ago. RIP @thegod_joekush. All I know is he was shot dead somewhere in Detroit, probably over jealousy.”

Here's the Original Video

Joe Kush was a musician/ singer based in Detroit, also known as Joseph Rivers. He used to be active on social media but has stopped updating since March 13, 2020. Here’s his Instagram account. So, the narrative that the man in the video was tossing money belonged to his friend who died of COVID, and it was his last wish is incorrect and misleading.

Fact check

Did New York Man Throw Money in Memory of His Friend Who Died From COVID-19? Here’s the Truth Behind the Video Going Viral With Fake Claim
Claim :

New York Man Tosses Money in Memory of His Friend Who Died From COVID-19

Conclusion :

The man in the video was tossing money in memory of his friend Joe Kush-- a musician in Detroit, who was reportedly shot dead last year.

Full of Trash
Clean

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 17, 2021 10:45 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).