Despite this, shortly after the event, individuals on social media associated the mass shooting in Kansas City with a person named “Sahil Omar,” described as a 44-year-old illegal immigrant.
According to a post on X, formerly Twitter, at least one of the Kansas City Chiefs parade shooters was identified as Sahil Omar, a 44-year-old illegal immigrant. However, no credible reports confirmed that Sahil Omar was indeed one of the shooters.
Misinformation resembling the false association with Sahil Omar emerged after events like the explosion at the Sandman Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas, in January of this year, as well as the November 2023 Rainbow Bridge crash on the U.S.-Canada border and the December 2023 shooting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
While it remains unclear whether a real person named Sahil Omar exists, the dissemination of such disinformation appears to be aimed at unfairly linking immigrants to mass shootings and criminal activities.
Police stated on Thursday that the shooting incident at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory rally, resulting in one fatality and 22 injuries, including several children, was the result of a personal altercation. Among those detained in connection with the incident, two were juveniles. Approximately one million enthusiastic fans had congregated in unusually warm weather to celebrate the parade of NFL champions when gunfire erupted shortly before 2:00 pm on Wednesday.
