Investigations have revealed that the false Pepsi HIV story is not about Nigeria but the fake UK MetropolitanPolice statement claiming the soft drink contained infected blood.
This has since been denied by the UK Metropolitan Police and there was no Sky News report on this false story. Medical experts have assured Nigerians that there is no need to worry. Reason: The story is not true, and the HIV virus cannot survive up to five minutes outside the human body.
According to a report first published by TheSun UK, Pepsi was hit by a sick hoax after a fake Met police statement was shared online claiming that the fizzy drink contained HIV-infected blood.
The message – falsely attributed to Met Police– claimed that Pepsi bottles in the United Kingdom (UK) were
contaminated.It began recirculating on social media in Britain after previously appearing in a different format in India.
They alleged that contaminated bottles were in the UK, and stated that the warning comes from the Metropolitan Police.The message also said that the incident was“shown on Sky News”.
The origins of the hoax go back to 2011, where a version of it appeared on Indian social networking sites and in email chains.
Similar to the British hoax, the original claimed to be a message from the police, but referred to a range of Pepsi products and stated that the incident would be reported on NDTV.
In a statement, Met police said: “This is being treated as a hoax”, adding “the allegation is unsubstantiated.” (PUNCH)
