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| - Fact Check: Don't fall for viral pic of Zelenskyy's wife sporting Gucci, Rolex, and LV in a jet, it's fake
A reverse search of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's wife's viral photo took us to a tweet from November 20.
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India Today Fact Check
This photo is morphed. The original picture is of Richard Heart, a popular cryptocurrency influencer and YouTuber. Olena’s face was digitally added to the photo.
“It warms the heart knowing that billions of our hard-earned tax dollars are going towards good causes this holiday season”, read a tweet sharing the photo of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s wife Olena. The First Lady of Ukraine, in the viral photo, could be seen sitting alone in a private jet. In the photo, Olena sported a vest and jogging pants that people claimed were from Gucci, a Rolex watch, and a suspected Louis Vuitton bag.
Those sharing the viral photo criticised Olena’s extravagant attire, calling it inappropriate for the wife of a war-torn country’s president who has been seeking international help.
One Twitter user wrote, “Olena went for the eccentric homeless look with an oligarch’s budget. Goes to show how cringe these people are. Having a blast while their people are dying. Disgusting.”
The archive of such posts can be found here and here.
AFWA found that this photo is morphed. The original photo is of Richard Heart. Olena’s face was photoshopped to it.
AFWA PROBE
A reverse search of the viral photo took us to a tweet from November 20. The Twitter thread, which was about a big shot from the cryptocurrency space, contained a photo very similar to the viral one. In terms of the person’s attire, accessories, and background in the photograph, everything appeared to be the same except for one thing — the face. As it turns out, the person in the original photo is Richard Heart, the founder of HEX Crypto.
Further searches led us to the same picture tweeted by Heart on August 19, while replying to Cory Klippsten, the CEO of a Bitcoin financial services firm Swan. A comparison of the original picture tweeted by Heart with the viral one can be seen below.
The same day, Heart tweeted another photo of himself in the same attire and location. Also, the cover photo of his Twitter profile features him holding the same bag.
Richard Heart is a popular crypto influencer and YouTuber. He is the founder of the Ethereum-based crypto token HEX. According to his website, Heart owns the world's largest cut diamond called “The Enigma”, the quickest Ferrari, and the most expensive Rolex ever made.
Olena Zelenska went for a two-day visit to the French Republic where she held a meeting with the First Lady of France Brigitte Macron, on December 13. This was her first international visit since the Russia-Ukraine war began. She was also joined by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal among other Ukrainian officials. There, about 70 countries and institutions worldwide pledged more than 1 billion euros ($1.05 billion) in immediate aid to help Ukraine get through a harsh winter.
(Written by Sanjana Saxena)
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