False, flagged: Maine police caught using AI to fake drug bust photo on Facebook

The Westbrook Maine Police Department posted an AI-generated image of a supposed drug bust on Facebook, then doubled down and falsely claimed it was real when called out by residents. The incident highlights growing concerns about law enforcement‘s understanding of AI technology and the potential for digital evidence manipulation.

What happened: Police shared an obviously fake photo over the weekend featuring telltale AI artifacts like gibberish text on drug packaging and scales.
• When AI-savvy locals immediately identified the image as artificial, the department posted a defensive follow-up insisting “this is NOT an AI-generated photo.”
• Officers claimed the “weird” packaging was likely “foreign” and possibly created by drug dealers using AI for “knock-off” labels.
• Both posts were quietly deleted within days.

The real story: An unnamed arresting officer used an AI tool to add the department’s patch to a legitimate drug bust photo.
• “Unbeknownst to anyone, when the app added the patch, it altered the packaging and some of the other attributes on the photograph,” the department’s eventual apology explained.
• The AI modification ironically removed some paraphernalia from the original image while creating obvious fake elements.

Why this matters: The incident exposes law enforcement’s digital literacy gaps and raises red flags about potential evidence tampering.
• “It makes me wonder how much people understand about technology, and how easy it is to fool people,” one local resident told WGME news.
• The department’s willingness to lie in defense of the fake image suggests they might do the same if officers become more sophisticated at digital manipulation.

The bigger concern: While this particular case involved an incompetent attempt at image editing, it demonstrates how easily police departments might misuse AI tools in more serious contexts involving evidence and public communications.