A bizarre claim circulating on social media says that actor Mel Gibson released a video of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton eating human flesh with a Haitian gang leader named “Barbecue.”
But no such video exists on the internet.
An X post has a collage of images that include Mel Gibson speaking into a microphone, Bill Clinton near a car, people riding in a trolley, three men leaning against a white wall while holding rifles and a woman opening her mouth while crossing the street.
The image is accompanied with text that says, “BOMBSHELL: Mel Gibson just released a VIDEO of Bill and Hillary Clinton engaging in C@NNIBALISM with the Haitian C@nnibal Gang Leader named ‘Barbecue!’”
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The post has a link that redirects users to a news article by American Media Group, a website that shares conspiracy theories. The news article does not contain the video or have any evidence that the video exists.
Alan Nierob, Gibson’s publicist, told PolitiFact that Gibson did not release such a video.
The post’s photo of Gibson is from a 2022 film, “On the Line.” The photo of Bill Clinton and the trolley is from 2010 in Bangkok, when he visited the set of “The Hangover Part II.”
And the image of the man holding the gun is Jimmy Chérizier, also known as Barbecue, the leader of Haiti’s powerful G9 Family and Allies gang.
Some people on social media have suggested that Barbecue’s name is a reference to cannibalism, although there is no evidence he or any Haitian gangs are engaging in the practice. Chérizier told The Associated Press in 2019 that he was given the nickname because his mother sold fried chicken when he was growing up. He was sanctioned by the United Nations in 2022 for alleged human rights abuses.
We searched news reports online and did not find any connection between the Clintons and Chérizier. The Clinton Foundation did raise $30 million for aid projects in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, with critics saying the money was used improperly.
We rate the claim that Mel Gibson released a video of Bill and Hillary Clinton engaging in cannibalism with Haitian cannibal leader ‘Barbecue’ Pants on Fire!
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