21-year-old TikTok astrologer arrested for fake earthquake prediction in Myanmar

Myanmar authorities on Friday arrested a 21-year-old TikTok astrologer on charges of spreading misinformation and causing panic in Sagaing after he predicted an earthquake.

Two weeks after the devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar and killed over 3500 people, the astrologer John Moe posted his prediction of another earthquake causing mass panic.

The authorities have raided the home of a TikTok astrologer and arrested him after a video he posted on April 9 went viral. In the video, he predicted that an earthquake would ‘hit every city in Myanmar’ on April 21 and urged people to “take important things with you and run away from buildings during the shaking”.

Moe has been arrested by on the charge of making “false statements with the intention of causing public panic”, as reported by the BBC.

However, no credible agency has predicted any likelihood of an earthquake in the South Asian nation.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) clarified, “Neither the USGS nor any other scientists have ever predicted a major earthquake. We do not know how.”

The text in the video reads, “On 21 April 2025, from 12 to 1 pm, the capital of the lower Myanmar will be hit by a strong earthquake”. He predicted that the epicentre would be in Thailand and asked people to “be careful only on that day”. He added that no more earthquakes will occur on that day.

His video had more than three million views.

A Yangon resident told the news agency AFP that many of her neighbours believed in the prediction. They refused to stay in their homes and camped outside on April 21, when Moe had predicted the earthquake to occur.

Moe’s account, John (Palmistry), is not functional now, but it has more than 3,00,000 followers. He often made predictions based on astrology and palmistry.

The areas of Mandalay and Sagaing, where he lives, were hit especially hard in the devastating earthquake of March 28. This caused additional anxiety among the residents.

The tremors of the March 28 earthquake in Myanmar were felt across the subcontinent, reaching China and India, and prompted a rare request from the Myanmar junta for foreign aid. According to the United Nations, 60,000 people were left homeless after this natural calamity.