MALAPPURAM: Police confirmed that the alarming video of a tiger purported to be walking in Karuvarakundu, was not real and was indeed an old video. It was reported that a youngster edited the video and made it viral on social media to spread panic.

The forest department filed a complaint with the Karuvarakundu police against the youth named Jerin for spreading fake footage. According to officials, Jerin posted the video with a clear intention to instill fear in people. As per the news, Jerin admitted to forest officials that he wilily edited an old video and posted it on social media, misleading people.

The video appeared on social media this morning with the caption that a tiger was seen prowling the streets of Karuvarakundu. It was also propagated that Jerin came face to face with the beast near Arthala Tea Estate. Jerin also claimed to have seen the tiger near the road in a forested rubber plantation near Arthala tea estate around 11 pm last Saturday.

The forest department, though initially panicked, found the video to be hoax by evening. The forest department was conducting an investigation into the incident after the footage from the vicinity of the tiger went viral. Forest department collected information from Jerin. Strong action may follow suit.