The ugly video clip from a Dundee housing estate in which a schoolgirl brandished a knife and an axe soon went viral, with rabble rousers such as Elon Musk and Tommy Robinson pitching in to claim the man filming the exchange was a ‘migrant’.
Others lauded the girl as a ‘Braveheart’ figure, defending her homeland from a predatory alien, with comparisons quickly cited about the Asian grooming gangs scandals of Rotherham and Rochdale.
Now we can reveal the man being threatened is a family man who has been living in the UK for four years – and who was accompanied by his wife on the way to the shops when the incident occurred.
Far from being fresh off a cross-channel small inflatable, as implied by Robinson and Musk, Fatos Ali Dumana, 21, says he came to Britain legally from Bulgaria he and his wife have an eight-month-old baby.
The self-styled ‘digital creator’ took the chance to have his own say on the bust-up which launched a thousand memes – and which also led to the girl being charged by police.
Speaking from his home in Dundee, Mr Dumana insisted he did nothing wrong and is in the country legitimately.
He said: ‘I have seen the social media and it’s blown up.
‘In the video she’s saying, “Don’t touch my sister, she’s only 12”.
‘I never touched her. I didn’t hit her, I swear on my life, I have a baby now. I would never hurt someone.
‘If she’s only 12 why was she messing with me and having weapons?
‘I was going to the shop and she was stopping me going on my way.’If I did hurt the girl, why didn’t the police arrest me?
‘They have done nothing to me.
‘They saw from the CCTV cameras from Farmfoods that she was stopping me go on my way to the shop.
‘There was one more person also who told them (the police) she was attacking me and calling me a f***** migrant.
‘I am not an illegal migrant. I have not done anything.
‘I did not hit them, I am a human not an animal.
‘I’ve seen what’s on social media every day, I want people to know what happened.’
Police sources have also confirmed there is no evidence to support the online rumours Mr Dumana is a migrant or committed any offence.
It saw former Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf state: ‘Who would have guessed the far right were full of bulls***.’
According to his social media accounts Mr Dumana is originally from Bulgarian town Kazanlak which is a 160-mile drive from the capital Sofia.
His bio says: ‘A gentleman from the Kingdom’ in Bulgarian.
He moved to Dundee in June 2021 and now lives in a council property with his wife Fatos Yulianova, 19.
It’s just a couple of minutes walk from where Saturday’s incident took place.
The couple had a baby boy together in December and he was given a UK provisional driving licence in 2022.
Mr Dumana states he starting working at Indian and Thai restaurant Tulsi in St Andrews a couple of months after arriving in Scotland.
The young father – who sports a large cross tattoo on his neck – also says he studied to learn English at the Coleg Cambria in Wrexham.
On one picture of the couple together one person recently wrote: ‘What were you doing talking to 12 year old Scottish girls foreigner?’
He has returned back to Bulgaria and spent time in the Netherlands during the past four years.
Mr Dumama has posted various family photos with his wife.
He has also uploaded dozen of videos of himself dancing and posing on TikTok.He also states Fingask Castle in Perthshire is his ‘favourite place’.
The incident happened at the weekend on a roadside grass verge close to the city’s High Street.
In the video the girl – wearing torn jogging bottoms and a navy T-shirt – is being kept away from Mr Dumana by another young female claiming to be her sister.
With her hands behind her back she then yells, ‘I’m f**** 12 mate. You’re f***** battering kids mate. Coz you’re f***** kid bashers.’
Mr Dumana is heard saying: ‘Show the knife, show the knife.’
The other youngster appears and says: ‘Get the f*** away from us.’
Mr Dumana again says ‘Show the knife’ which prompts the girl to reveal a large blade and axe to the camera.
He then says, ‘That’s it, that’s it, show the knife.’
The second girl is then heard saying: ‘Don’t f***** touch my little sister she’s f***** 12.
‘She’s f***** 12 and you’ve just battered me mate.’
The girl with the weapons initially walks off and appears to try and hide the objects under her T-shirt.
But she then turns back towards him and twice says: ‘Wait til I f***** catch you mate.’
Another female out of shot – believed to be his wife Yulianova – then utters something in Bulgarian before he responds in the same dialect.
He then repeats: ‘Yeah show the knife.’
The second young female then appears between the girl and man and says, ‘Don’t touch her’ before the footage ends.
The video has gone viral online and has been viewed millions of times.
Cops confirmed they were called to St Ann Lane, in the Lochee area of Dundee, just after 7:30pm on Saturday.
A number of force vehicles were spotted at the Balgay Street car park as officers launched an investigation.
Police have officially refused to divulge the nationality or identity of Mr Dumana or what prompted the disagreement.
Officers spoke to him on Saturday evening but he wasn’t arrested or charged.
Police Scotland Chief Superintendent Nicola Russell said: ‘We are aware of misinformation being shared on social media in relation to an incident where a Bulgarian couple were approached by youths in St Ann Lane, Dundee, on Saturday, 23 August, 2025.
‘A 12-year-old girl has been charged with being in possession of offensive weapons. She will be referred to the relevant authorities and our enquiries are ongoing.
‘We would like to thank the local community for their help with our investigation and would urge the public not to share misinformation about this incident or speculate on the circumstances.’