Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that immigrants in an Ohio town are eating other residents’ pets.

The claims were immediately fact-checked by moderators last night. presidential debate between Mr. Trump And Kamala Harris.

But what exactly did Trump say and where did those claims come from?

What Trump said during the debate

The presidential candidate said in the first duel with his opponent: “In Springfield they eat the dogs, the people that came here, they eat the cats… They eat… they eat the pets of the people that live there.

“And this is what is happening in our country, and it is a disgrace.”

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When ABC debate host David Muir responded that they had contacted the city manager who disputed the claims, Trump said, “I’ve seen people on television… people on television say ‘my dog ​​was taken and used for food,’ so maybe he said that and maybe that’s a good thing for a city manager to say.”

Ms Harris, who was seen laughing and saying: “This is unbelievable”, responded when it was her turn: “Such extreme stuff.”

JD Vance Supports Trump’s Comments

Trump’s running mate JD Vance, who had already tweeted about the claims on Monday, defended the Republican presidential candidate’s comments after the debate, saying: “No one spread false claims.”

Mr. Vance, the Ohio senator, added that the Haitian community has caused “a lot of problems” in the area.

“It has led to the disappearance of animals,” he said. “A lot of my constituents have said this is happening.

“The city manager said there is no verifiable evidence. Many residents on the ground have said there is. That just means the city manager, I think, is not aware of what is happening on the ground.”

He reiterated that he had spoken to residents who had seen geese being taken from local ponds and slaughtered.

Where do these claims come from?

They appear to have come from a local resident who complained about Haitian immigrants at a Springfield City Council meeting on August 27.

The man, who said he was a social media influencer, urged the government to “do something” and made unsubstantiated claims about alleged crimes they committed.

He said they caught, slaughtered and ate ducks in a local park.

Similar claims have appeared in Facebook posts by local crime-fighting groups. A viral post by an alleged resident said her “daughter’s friend” had seen Haitians eat her cat and that local authorities had said they were doing the same to ducks and geese.

What are the facts?

Springfield police said in a statement that they were aware of the “rumors” and had no information to support them.

“In response to recent reports of criminal activity by immigrants in our city, we want to make it clear that there have been no credible reports or specific allegations that pets have been abused, injured or mistreated by individuals within the immigrant community,” police said.

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Thousands of temporary Haitian migrants have arrived in the city in recent years, as ongoing unrest in their homeland has given way to violent gangs ruling the streets. Their arrival has been controversial in local communities.

Sky News US correspondent Mark Stone said: “This is, as far as we are aware, a completely unsubstantiated claim.” He added that Trump was “clutching on to a conspiracy theory” and “running away with it”.

Springfield Mayor Rob Rue also said Tuesday that there are no documented cases of immigrants eating pets.

Speaking at a city commission meeting, Mr. Rue said: “Rumors like this distract from the real issues, such as concerns about housing, the resources needed for our schools and our overburdened health care system.”

Mr Rue also explained that an alleged case of someone attacking a cat – wrongly attributed to a Haitian immigrant in Springfield – occurred in Canton, Ohio, about 160 miles away, Sky News’ US affiliate NBC News reported. The suspect in that case, accused of animal cruelty, has no known connection to Haiti, according to The Canton Repository newspaper.

Had Trump made these claims before?

Not directly, but Republicans, including Mr. Vance, had stoked the rumors ahead of the debate.

The official X account of the Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee posted an AI-generated image of Trump with his arms around a duck and a cat, with the caption: “Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio!”

Ted Cruz, the Republican senator from Texas, shared a photo of two cats hugging each other with the caption: “Please vote for Trump so Haitian immigrants don’t eat us.”

On Monday, Mr. Vance tweeted: “Over the past few weeks, my office has received many inquiries from Springfield residents reporting that their neighbors’ pets or local wildlife have been taken by Haitian migrants.

“It is of course possible that all these rumours turn out to be false.”