Claims people fled Chongming in shipping container proved fake

Chongming County authorities have dismissed a rumor that 28 residents fled to neighboring Jiangsu Province by hiding in a shipping container.

A screenshot in which a conversation history was recorded went viral online. In the conversation, one person said the people from Chongming Island hid in a container and arrived in Haimen, where 25 were caught and three were still at large.

Authorities investigated the claim and said it was groundless. They said a video used to "prove" the rumor turned out to actually show mariners stuck in Haimen, rather than people from Shanghai.

Police have found seven slanderers. Two have been identified. The case is still under investigation.