On January 4, a Facebook account frequently spreading disinformation, “Shalva Kavtaradze,” and the Facebook page “Around the Earth” shared videos that, according to their claims, depict events unfolding in Venezuela following the arrest of Nicolás Maduro. In both videos, we see people in the streets holding Venezuelan flags. Some of them are crying. According to the description of one post, these are tears of joy, while Kavtaradze claims that in reality people are grieving over Maduro’s arrest.
The circulating videos, which allegedly show Venezuelans celebrating the arrest of President Maduro, are created using artificial intelligence. Their original sources are TikTok accounts that specifically produce AI-generated videos. In addition, AI-detection tools confirm that the footage was most likely created using artificial intelligence.
In the video uploaded by Shalva Kavtaradze, the name of the TikTok account, ia_comediante, is clearly visible. As our investigation established, this account is the original source of the video. The account published the video on January 4 and wrote in the post description that the Venezuelan people are celebrating freedom. In the footage, people can indeed be heard chanting, “We are free.” However, it should be noted that the post includes a note stating that the creator has labelled the footage as AI-generated.
For additional analysis, we verified the authenticity of the circulated video using the AI-detection tools Hive Moderation and InVID. According to the analysis of the first tool, the footage is AI-generated with a probability of 99.9%. According to the second tool, this probability is 53%.
According to Hiya, an AI-detection program embedded in InVID that analyzes audio, the voice heard in the video was assessed as AI-generated with a 61% likelihood.
Through its investigation, Myth Detector established that the original source of the second video circulating on Facebook is also a TikTok account named marlonpainting. The video was also published on January 4, and, as stated in the post description, it allegedly shows how Venezuelans are celebrating Maduro’s arrest. Unlike the previous case, this post does not include any disclaimer indicating the use of artificial intelligence; however, the account’s biography states that the user also employs AI to create content.
Using Hive Moderation and InVID, we also verified the video shared by the Facebook page “Around the Earth.” According to Hive Moderation’s analysis, the video was created with the help of artificial intelligence with a probability of 79.2%, while InVID’s analysis puts this probability at 97%. According to Hiya, the audio used in the footage contains traces of AI with a likelihood of 41%, which is why it classifies it as “likely to be AI-generated.”
On January 3, 2026, on the order of Donald Trump, U.S. military forces arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife at their home and transferred them to New York, where they were charged with multiple crimes. This event triggered mixed reactions around the world. Among them were Venezuelans themselves: some held pro-Maduro rallies in Caracas, while others celebrated Maduro’s arrest and the country’s liberation from dictatorship, both in Venezuela and in the streets of other countries.
In recent days, numerous disinformation and manipulative claims, including fabricated photos, about the arrest of Nicolás Maduro have circulated. These have been verified by Myth Detector. For details, see our related materials:
- Fake Photo Claiming Nicolás Maduro’s Capture Spreads on Facebook
- Another Fabricated Photo of Nicolás Maduro’s Arrest Circulates
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