Old prank video misrepresented as migrant defecating in public | Fact check

The claim: Video shows migrant defecating in subway under Biden administration

A Feb. 27 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows what appears to be a man defecating into a trash can while squatting on top of it in a subway station.

"Welcome to the new America," reads on-screen text.

The post's caption reads, "Illegal immigration…. And all you democrats voted for it." It includes the hashtags #biden and #kamala.

The post was liked more than 300 times in a week.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

The post misrepresents both the timing and content of the video. It shows a stunt staged by a popular content creator from New York City, not a candid moment of a person who came to the country illegally. The video was originally posted in 2019, before President Joe Biden was elected.

Content creator posted original video in 2019

The video in the Instagram post predates Biden's election in 2020. It was originally posted in August 2019 by Prince Zee, a provocative content creator whose other popular videos include “Beating a Baby in Public,” “Lighting a Baby on Fire” and “Pooping in an Adult Diaper around NYC."

The video also doesn't show a candid moment of a person living in the country illegally. It shows Prince Zee, identified in news reports as Zeeshan Saroya, recreating a scene he said he viewed while traveling abroad.

"I decided to take that same concept ... and apply it to the New York City environment and test out the people reactions," the caption on the original video reads.

Fact check: San Francisco Elections Commission member is not 'illegal immigrant'

In a 2019 podcast appearance, he said he was born and raised in Queens, New York City.

Prince Zee has amassed a significant following on social media. He has over 6 million followers on TikTok, 1 million subscribers on YouTube and 300,000 followers on Instagram.

USA TODAY has debunked multiple claims involving the supposed immigration status of individuals, including claims that a 44-year-old migrant was a suspect in the Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting and that an "illegal immigrant" was appointed to San Francisco's elections board.

The Instagram user who shared the video did not immediately respond to a request for comment. An attempt to reach Prince Zee for comment was also not immediately successful.

Our fact-check sources:

• Prince Zee, Aug. 22, 2019, Instagram post

• Prince Zee, accessed March 5, X account

• ItsYaBoyMike (YouTube), Aug. 9, 2019, PRINCE ZEE | MADE IN NEW YORK PODCAST

• ABC 7 New York, Jan. 29, 2021, YouTuber arrested, accused of faking Times Square medical incident

• Inside Edition, Oct. 9, 2021, New York Man Scratches, and Spits at Passengers While Trying to Exit Moving Bus Through a Window

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.

USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim video shows migrant defecating in NYC subway | Fact check