Meta removes Facebook account of Slovak PM’s alleged shooter

Shortly after last week’s assassination attempt on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, Meta took down the Facebook account of the shooter, the tech giant confirmed to Euractiv on Wednesday (22 May).

Meta classified the incident as a violation of its content moderation rules immediately after the shooting on 15 May. Under the rules, content that glorifies or represents the shooting or the perpetrator must be removed.

On the night of the incident, in accordance with its policy, Meta deleted the account of the alleged assailant, whom the media named as Juraj Cintula. He was arrested after the shooting and was charged with attempted murder on 16 May.

Shortly after the removal, Meta notified the Slovak authorities and is continuing to cooperate with law enforcement, it told Euractiv.

Slovak government officials suggested on Sunday that the 71-year-old attacker might not have acted alone, contrary to initial beliefs, Reuters reported on Tuesday. Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj-Eštok announced an investigation into whether the shooter had accomplices.

Defence Minister Robert Kaliňák said that the deletion of the shooter’s profile by Facebook is not related to the indications that he may have had an accomplice.

“This matter is unrelated to the account hack we mentioned on Sunday,” said Pavol Gašpar, deputy at the Slovak Information Service (SIS), the country’s lead secret service agency.

According to the agency, the attacker’s profile could have been tampered with by someone other than Facebook employees.

The suspect’s Facebook communication history was reportedly deleted following the attack, raising suspicions that someone other than the platform itself –  such as an accomplice – may have had access to the shooter’s profile.

However, Meta told Euractiv that no one else was involved in the removal of the perpetrator’s account and it was the company that deleted it.

Disinformation

Following the assassination attempt, disinformation spread quickly on social media, Euractiv reported.

Slovak accounts falsely portrayed the attacker as an extreme liberal, while some international posts linked the incident to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the World Health Organisation. Debunked rumours also included the attacker being Ukrainian and part of a pro-Russian paramilitary group.

The disinformation campaigns appeared to be highly coordinated, targeting domestic and international audiences with false narratives, experts said.

The Slovak prime minister is recovering in the hospital after being hit by four bullets almost a week ago, the authorities said.

Charles Szumski contributed to the reporting.

[Edited by Eliza Gkritsi/Zoran Radosavljevic]

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