Two arrested for bank rumour Tweets

[Judi Lynn]

Two arrested for bank rumour Tweets
By DANIEL WALLIS, Reuters
Last Updated: July 9, 2010 8:59am

CARACAS - Venezuelan police said Thursday they arrested two people for spreading false rumors on the micro-blogging site Twitter aimed at destabilizing the Latin American country's banking system.

While Venezuela's big banks are generally seen as structurally sound, a number of takeovers of small failing banks since last year triggered rumors of impending disaster in the sector, worrying savers.

"Anybody who spreads malicious rumors by any means, emails, SMS messages on cellphones, Twitter, Facebook ... or any other means of communication is committing a crime and should answer for it before the competent authorities," Wilmer Flores Trosel, head of the CICPC national investigative police unit, said in a statement.

He said a man was arrested in possession of a cellphone used to send the first illegal Tweet, and that detectives had also detained a woman and seized hard discs and computer equipment from her. Both suspects were picked up in the eastern city of Ciudad Bolivar, CICPC said, following a four-month investigation into the posting of false information about the nation's financial system on Twitter "with the aim of creating runs on banks."

More:
http://www.torontosun.com/news/world/2010/07/09/14655456.html

[Judi Lynn]

1. Venezuela arrests 2 for banking rumour Tweets

Latest Update: Saturday10/7/2010July, 2010, 12:16 AM Doha Time
Venezuela arrests 2 for banking rumour Tweets

Venezuelan police has said they arrested two people for spreading false rumours on the micro-blogging site Twitter aimed at destabilising the Latin American country’s banking system.

While Venezuela’s big banks are generally seen as structurally sound, a number of takeovers of small failing banks since last year triggered rumours of impending disaster in the sector, worrying savers.

“Anybody who spreads malicious rumours by any means, emails, SMS messages on cellphones, Twitter, Facebook ... or any other means of communication is committing a crime and should answer for it before the competent authorities,” the CICPC national investigative police unit said.

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