FACT-CHECK: Fake image of President Marcos Jr., first lady in prison uniforms spreads online

CLAIM: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the first lady, Liza Araneta-Marcos were photographed in inmate clothing.

RATING: FALSE

An AI-manipulated photo of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos wearing prison inmates’ attire surfaced online on Feb. 25, 2026. 

Flagged Content: Facebook page “Maricar Serrano” posted the photo of the presidential couple, which immediately drew social media engagement. 

• The post had a caption which read  “Mindset ba.. mindset.. ” 
• The original, unaltered photo was a screenshot from an RTVM livestream posted by the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s X account on Feb. 24.
• The original post showed Marcos Jr. and the first lady attending an event, not in a prison like in the altered photo. 
• The president and first lady were wearing blue Philippine team shirts during a handover ceremony of selected memorabilia from boxing legend Manny Pacquiao at the National Sports Museum in Pasig City. 

Our Debunk: While PressOne.PH was able to find the original photo through simple reverse image search, running the image through multiple generative AI detection tools returned strong evidence of manipulation. 

• Analysis from both undetectable.ai and zerogpt.com gave readings of 97% AI manipulation. 
• As of writing, there are no reports of Marcos Jr.and Araneta-Marcos having been ordered imprisoned. 

Rewind: On Nov. 14, 2025, former partylist representative Zaldy Co claimed that Marcos Jr. ordered a ₱100B insertion in the national budget. 

• Since then, rival political factions have called for the inclusion of the president in the list of personalities who should be arrested and investigated for corruption. 
• Based on a survey conducted in late November 2025, Marcos Jr’s. satisfaction rates have dropped to 21%. 

Why we fact checked this: This altered photo has over 8,500 reactions and 336 shares on Facebook as of writing. 

• The account “Maricar Serrano” has over 41,000 followers, which suggests a decent online presence and influence. 

Spot the fake:  AI-generated or manipulated photos are rapidly emerging as a potent tool for spreading online disinformation. 

• It is critical to verify such visual content, utilizing free AI detection tools. A high follower count does not guarantee the accuracy of what is being shared. Alfonso Aguilar 

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