A man's snapshot of a crocodile roaming in a city's reservoir sparked panic and a search by authorities... but the photo ended up being an AI-generated hoax.
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Now, the man reportedly faces years in prison over the AI-generated boner.
Ye Lin has been accused by the Singapore police of creating an AI image of a crocodile lingering in the city's Pandan Reservoir back in August, according to the BBC. Authorities claim the alleged sighting sparked an investigation in search of the potentially dangerous reptile. As a result, the reservoir was shut down for two days.
The Singapore Rowing Association and Singapore Canoe Federation were also ordered to suspend their activities while national parks staff rished to locate and capture the crocodile.
Meanwhile, police also allege that Ye Lin attempted to cover his tracks following the public panic over the crocodile. They claim that Lin deleted both the picture he created using Gemini AI and the app along with it.
"The man subsequently deleted the image and the related application in an attempt to conceal his actions," the police alleged in a statement via the BBC.
Per the BBC, Lin is charged with communicating a false message and obstructing the course of justice for allegedly deleting the image and the app used to create it. The Myanmar native is reportedly pleading guilty to the charges.
Singapore Man Could Face A Decade in Prison for AI Crocodile Hoax
Meanwhile, Lin could do some pretty serious time for the hoax due to strict sentencing in Singapore.
Reportedly, sending a false message could earn him up to three years in prison. The obstruction of justice charge can carry up to seven years in prison.
The possible fines for the charges also really add up. BBC reports that Lin faces a fine of $7,800.
In fairness to Lin, it doesn't sound like he posted the AI crocodile publicly on social media. According to reports, he sent it to a "colleague." However, the tone of how he presented the image is unclear. Regardless, his colleague forwarded the image to authorities, creating the panic and search for the animal.
Again, details are a bit fuzzy on how the colleague sent the image or to whom exactly before the hysteria began. It sounds a bit like cooler heads should have prevailed before the national water agency bolted into action.
Meanwhile, Lin has been released on a S$50,000 bail and is due in court on Nov. 10, according to Dextero.
