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FACT CHECK | Facebook accounts impersonate 2 Davao City councilors using A.I. 

By  Fact Check

|  March 16, 2026 - 9:50 pm

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews /16 March) – At least two Facebook accounts are impersonating two councilors in Davao City: Temujin “Tek” Ocampo of the first district and Antoinette “Petite” Principe of the third district are deepfakes. 

This has drawn attention because they spread misleading content and misuse the officials’ images online. 

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A screenshot from the AI-generated photos posted by their Facebook accounts 

The photos in the profiles show them with a baby, suggesting that they are a couple when they are not. 

This prompted scrutiny over the possible misuse of the officials’ identities on social media. Users flagged the profiles and questioned the legitimacy of the posts, noting that the accounts used the images of the two councilors. 

An initial review of the images’ metadata and inconsistencies confirms they are AI- generated. 

By searching the accounts and clicking on the profile, it was found that the account named Ronaldo Abellanosa was created on February 1, 2026. 

As of March 16, 2026, the account has 39 friends and 10 public posts. MindaNews also found that the account named Madelyn Tan,  created on the same day, February 1, 2026, has 33 friends and 8 posts.

These two Facebook accounts have the same friends.

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Screenshot of the list of friends from the Facebook accounts

MindaNews fact-checked this because the use of images of the councilors violates Meta’s community standards. Meta prohibits users from pretending to be another person or misrepresenting their identity on the platform. 

Both councilors told MindaNews via messenger that they have reported the matter to Meta. 

As of March 16, 2026, the profiles remain active and continue to post content online. 

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Screenshot from one of the fake Facebook accounts

The first photo shows the location and date as February 1, 2026, at 1:04 PM in Purok Cattleya, Bankerohan, Davao City, but this location does not appear in official records. 

The second photo clearly shows February 15, 2026, at 7:45 AM in SM Level Premier, Davao Del Sur which is an inaccurate location tag and should be SM Lanang Premier, Davao City. 

SM official mall hours indicate that it opens at 10:00 am, so since the photo shows it was only 7:45 AM, the mall was still closed at that time. 

The differences in dates and location suggest that the profiles are created to impersonate individuals in different areas. 

After conducting a thorough analysis of the images used as profile pictures on the Facebook accounts, MindaNews found several irregularities indicating these are AI-generated. 

The Facebook photos allegedly of Ocampo and Principe in the fake accounts Ronaldo Abellanosa and Madelyn Tan show an overly smooth or plastic-like skin. 

The hands also show inconsistent skin tone because the color of the hands is not the same. The backgrounds of the photos also appear visibly distorted. 

The two children in the photo look different. One appears older  and bigger, and could pass off as a foreigner, while the second looks younger. 

According to Meta, they do not allow the use of their services and will restrict or disable Facebook, Instagram, and threads account or other entities (such as pages, groups) that impersonate another person or entity by: using their image(s), name or likeness with the aim to deceive others and speaking in the voice of another person or entity for whom the user is not authorized to do so (e.g. by creating a page or profile). 

As with all our reports, MindaNews welcomes fact-check leads or suggestions from the public (Rovic Lloyd Buot and Melody Tagnipis/ DOrSU Interns)


About MindaNews Fact Check

MindaNews Fact Check seeks to fight misinformation and disinformation circulating on the internet, news platforms and communities that we serve.

What is MindaNews Fact Check?
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Methodology

As a news media organization, we strictly adhere to accuracy, fairness, balance, independence, accountability and transparency not just in our fact-checking initiative but in all other aspects of our work at MindaNews. We fact-check a claim that is specifically claimed to be a fact and involved the public interest or the welfare of the people. We debunk false claims using official government records, journals or interviews with experts. We don’t fact check opinions.

How Do We Fact Check?


Correction Policy

Consistent with our trust for factual reporting, we will rectify any error that we have committed. If you spot a factual error, you may notify the MindaNews Editors.
Correction Process
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About MindaNews

Mindanao Institute of Journalism​

MindaNews is the news service arm of the Mindanao Institute of Journalism (MinJourn). MindaNews was founded in 2001 by independent, professional Mindanawon journalists who left the country’s most widely-circulated Manila-based broadsheet to tell the stories of Mindanao from the lenses of Mindanawons.
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About MindaNews Fact Check

MindaNews Fact Check seeks to fight misinformation and disinformation circulating on the internet, news platforms and communities that we serve.
 
What is MindaNews Fact Check?
MindaNews Fact Check tracks and debunks fake news, false claims and misleading statements of government officials, civil society leaders and netizens being spread on the internet, especially on social media sites. MindaNews values truth and accuracy in performing our journalistic work.
Why we fact-check?
Politicians, government officials and other public and private figures at times tend to bend facts to suit or advance their vested interests, or their principals, in effect misleading the public. The distorted facts spread easily with the popularity of the internet and the wide influence of social media.
 
As independent journalists, our primordial duty is to tell the truth and present facts to help the public discern issues and concerns impacting their lives.
How do we rate claims?

FAKE – if the claim is completely invented.

FALSE – if the claim contradicts, undermines or disputes truthful facts, actual events and official records (i.e. laws and scientific studies)

MISLEADING – if the claim is based on truth but maliciously twisted that gives a different impression to serve a group or individual’s vested interests.

ALTERED – pertains to images or videos that were manipulated to mislead the public.

MISSING CONTEXT – if the claim needs more clarification or contextualization to make it clearer.
 
Where do you post your results?
We post our fact-checked stories in mindanews.com, on Facebook and Twitter with links to the original piece. We have a dedicated fact check page, where all fact-checked stories can be found.
How did MindaNews Fact Check start?

Since its establishment in 2001, MindaNews has been living up to its vision of being the “leading provider of accurate, timely and comprehensive news and information on Mindanao and its peoples, serving economically, politically and culturally empowered communities” and its mission to “professionally and responsibly cover Mindanao events, peoples and issues to inform, educate, inspire and influence communities.”

MindaNews was founded by reporters precisely to ensure that reports about Mindanao, an island grouping that has suffered misinformation and disinformation long before these words became fashionable, are accurate.
 
Our policy has always been to ensure that reports are thoroughly vetted before they are dispatched and uploaded on our website.
 
Our fact-checking initiative with a uniform format started in October 2021 as part of Internews’ pioneering Philippine Fact-Checker Incubator (PFCI) project. Internews is an international non-profit that supports independent media from 100 countries.
 
Prior to the PFCI project, MindaNews co-founded Tsek.ph, a collaboration among Philippine media institutions to fight disinformation and misinformation during the 2019. Tsek.ph did the same thing for the 2022 elections.
 
Where do you get funds?
MindaNews has sustained its operation through proceeds from subscriptions of its news service (news, special reports, opinion pieces, photos) and sales of books. It also receives grants from non-state actors. Editorial prerogative, however, is left entirely to MindaNews.
 
MindaNews does not accept funds from politicians or domestic or foreign states for its fact-checking initiative. For the other operations of MindaNews as a media organization, we have received grants from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The grants from NED and UNESCO have been used for coverage, staff compensation, administrative expenses, and to train fellow journalists.
 
For MindaNews’ fact-checking initiatives, it received support from Internews (September 2021 to October 2022) and the BUILD grant administered by the International Fact-Checking Network (August 1, 2023 to July 31, 2024).
 
As a matter of policy, MindaNews does not allow these funders to interfere in our editorial processes.
 
Do you accept leads from the public for your fact-checking initiative?
 
MindaNews encourages the public to provide us with leads not only for potential fact-check pieces but other news stories as well of interest to the general public.
Our fact checks include this paragraph encouraging readers to be part of the process: “As with all our other reports, MindaNews welcomes leads or suggestions from the public to potential fact check pieces.”

MindaNews Fact Check - Methodology

What standards do you follow when fact-checking?


As a news organization, we strictly adhere to accuracy, fairness, balance, independence, accountability and transparency not just in our fact-checking initiative but in all other aspects of our work at MindaNews.


We abide by the Philippine Press Institute’s Journalist’s Code of Ethics. Since we became part of Internews’ Philippine Fact-Checker Incubator project, we have been striving to adhere with the IFCN Code of Principles, in step with our organization’s commitment to non-partisanship, transparency and fairness.


We fact-check a claim that is specifically claimed to be a fact and involved the public interest or the welfare of the people. We debunk false claims using official government records, journals or interviews with experts. 


We don’t fact-check opinions.

How do we fact-check?

Step 1: Team members monitor press conferences, speeches, statements, news, interviews, social media sites, etc. for statements worth fact-checking.


Step 2: When a claim is worth fact-checking, a team member looks for multiple sources to dispute the claim, including tracing the original source document.


Step 3:  Fact-checked claims are then submitted to the editor for copy editing and vetting. The link/s to debunk the claim are always included in the story.  


Step 4: A rating card is prepared to accompany the fact-checked piece, or infographics if needed, to immediately flag readers what the article is all about. 


Step 5: The senior editor takes another look before the article is posted on the website and social media accounts.

Correction Policy

Consistent with our vision and mission as a media institution, we rectify any error committed. If you spot a factual error, you may notify us thru editor@mindanews.com or our Facebook Messenger @Mindanews.


Correction Workflow


  • Errors pointed out are immediately brought to the attention of the editors and the fact-checking team. 


  • The fact-checker is immediately notified for verification. 


  • Once verified, the error is to be corrected within 24 hours and vetted before publication on the website. 


  • Readers will immediately know errors have been corrected through the Editor’s note posted above the article. 


  • The person who notified MindaNews about the error will be informed that the correction has been made.

Submit a Correction

About MindaNews

MindaNews is the news service arm of the Mindanao Institute of Journalism (MinJourn). It is composed of independent, professional journalists who believe and practice people empowerment through media. MinJourn, which is duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission with registration number CN201700385, is managed by its Board of Directors.

MindaNews values its journalistic independence. It started in May 2001 as a media cooperative and in January 2017 registered as a nonstock, nonprofit media organization.  We do not  accept funding from politicians, political parties or partisan groups.

Editorial staff

Fact-checking Unit: Romer (Bong) Sarmiento, Yas D. Ocampo

 

Mindanao Institute of Journalism

 

Board of Directors

President & CEO: Jowel Canuday, D.Phil. (oxon.)
Vice President: Romer S. Sarmiento

Members
Carolyn O. Arguillas, M.A.
Rhodora Gail T. Ilagan, Ph.D.
Amalia B. Cabusao (Doc Can.)
Robert D. Timonera
Ellen P. Alinea