Farhan Asif has been charged by Pakistani authorities

A man accused of spreading disinformation that led to widespread disorder in the aftermath of the Southport stabbing attacks has been charged by Pakistani authorities. According to the BBC, police in Lahore have said Farhan Asif was linked to Channel3Now, a website that posted false information about who committed the attack.

The website shared a false name for the attacker and incorrectly claimed he was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat last year. This incorrect information was widely circulated on social media and led Merseyside Police to issue a statement to refute the claim.

According to the BBC, Mr Asif has told he had written the article based on information copied from a UK-based social media account without verifying it. He claimed that he ran the website alone but Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency is now investigating whether anyone else is involved.

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BBC received a comment from a person who claimed to be “management” at Channel3Now. They told BBC Verify the false name “shouldn’t have happened, but it was an error, not intentional”. Tech Against Terrorism has urged heightened vigilance against foreign interference following the far-right violence after three children were killed in a mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed dance party.

Tech Against Terrorism said Channel3 Now’s false claims about the suspect’s identity were repeated on Russia Today – the country’s state broadcaster. The false claims helped fuel far-right conspiracy theories which ultimately led to violent disturbances across the UK.

Both the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, and the Chief Constable of Merseyside Police, Serena Kennedy, have also spoken about the dangers of misinformation. When Ms Cooper visited Southport the day after the mass stabbing, she urged the public to avoid “unhelpful” speculation and added social media companies “need to take some responsibility.”

Speaking to the ECHO CC Kennedy added: “People have attended after the vigil for the purpose of mindless violence, thuggery and hooliganism and they do not represent Southport, they do not represent Merseyside. There is a lot of misinformation and speculation out there.”

Axel Rudakubana has been charged with three counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder after the stabbings The 18-year-old charged with the murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar is set to stand trial next year.