Video does not show man raging because ‘store that gives illegal migrants free PS5s ran out’

A video is being shared online with claims it shows a rage incident after an Oxford City Council scheme to give out free PlayStation 5s to “illegal migrants” ran out of the consoles.

But this is misleading—the footage is not recent, nor was it filmed in the UK, and Oxford City Council has told Full Fact it’s operating no such scheme.

In the 12 second clip circulating on social media, a man wearing a hooded jacket can be seen pushing over displays and knocking stock over inside a video games shop.

It’s been posted with the caption: “UK illegal migrant loses his temper as store that gives illegal migrants free PlayStation 5’s [sic] on behalf of Oxford city council runs out.”

A longer version of the same clip, available on YouTube, was uploaded in November 2018, with the video’s description saying that it shows a man who “tries to return Fallout 76 to Gamestop and flies into a rage because of the store return policy”.

GameStop is an American video game, consumer electronics, and gaming merchandise retailer which closed all of its physical UK branches in 2016.

In the longer video, the man who pushes over the displays can be heard speaking with an American accent, as does the staff member at the till. GameStop branding is also visible on some of the displays, one of which is advertising the game Red Dead Redemption 2, which was released in 2018.

Gaming media reported at the time that the incident was believed to have taken place in North Carolina, with another outlet quoting the filmer, who said it occurred after the man flew into a rage when he was told he could not get a full refund while attempting to return a copy of the game Fallout 76, which was released in November 2018.

Full Fact also contacted Oxford City Council about the claim that “illegal migrants” were being given free PlayStation 5 consoles.

The council told us it had no knowledge of the video and had no scheme for giving away PlayStations.

We often see old content reshared with misleading captions claiming it depicts current events circulating on social media. Before sharing something you see, first consider whether it comes from a trustworthy and verifiable source. Our toolkit and guides can help you do this.