FACT CHECK: Was A Chicago Restaurant Closed After The Owner Killed And Cooked A Person?

Elias AtienzaApril 15, 2022

An image shared on Facebook claims a Chicago restaurant was shut down after the owner was arrested for killing and cooking a person.

Verdict: False

The image is an advertisement for a fictional story. There is no record of such an incident actually occurring.

Fact Check:

The Facebook image shows what appears to be a screen grab of a news broadcast showing the outside of a restaurant with a sign on it that says, “Business Closed By Order Of The City Of Chicago.” At the bottom of the screen is an alleged ABC7 Chicago news chyron that reads, “Restaurant Shut Down” while at the top is text that reads, “Chicago Soul Food Restaurant Owner Arrested After Killing Boyfriend And Serving His Intestines To Customers.”

There is no evidence such an event occurred. No such article appears on ABC7’s website, nor are there any credible news reports documenting the alleged crime. A keyword and image search found the image featured in the Facebook post stems from an Instagram post promoting a fictional novel by Quan Millz.

“This story, of course, is fiction and is being turned into a movie by international bestselling author QUAN MILLZ,” reads part of the Instagram post’s caption. (RELATED: FACT CHECK: No, The Military Did Not Arrest A Special Assistant To Anthony Fauci)

Millz shared the same image in an April 9 Instagram post that was followed by an announcement that the story would be the basis of a film set to be released on Tubi, a subscription-based streaming service.

A reverse image search showed that the actual news chyron featured in the post is from a 2020 story about a Mexican restaurant, El Viejon, being shut down for having too many people in violation of COVID-19 guidelines, according to ABC 7. In the Facebook image, the restaurant’s name is partially visible. The chyron in the Facebook image has been altered to include a fabricated address, “1185 W 200 ST, Chicago.”