Kaeo Weekes shuts down fake twins pregnancy hoax
Canberra Raiders fullback Kaeo Weekes has revealed he was forced to reassure family members after a fake Facebook story falsely claimed he and fiancée Madison Ashby had welcomed twins.
The bizarre claim was one of several AI-generated stories circulating online involving Raiders players and officials, with Weekes admitting his own parents were among those left confused by the fabricated reports.
The 24-year-old said fake news had become an increasing problem, with social media users able to create convincing stories about players and clubs within minutes.
One post falsely claimed Weekes and Ashby had become parents to twins, despite the couple never announcing a pregnancy.
While the Raiders star insisted the stories did not personally affect him, he admitted it became frustrating when worried relatives began asking questions.
'Yeah, you always see that stuff,' Weekes told The Canberra Times.
Canberra Raiders star Kaeo Weekes has revealed his family fell victim to a bizarre AI-generated Facebook hoax involving his fiancée Madison Ashby
A fake online post falsely claimed Weekes and Ashby were expecting twins, forcing the Raiders fullback to reassure relatives
The 24-year-old admitted the false reports did not bother him personally, but said it was harder dealing with concerned family members
'You can create whatever you want to create now with AI or whatever.
'There's a lot of fake news out there these days and you've just got to be careful what you're watching.
'People can write whatever they want, it doesn't really affect me.
'It's just all my family and stuff like that.
'They always ask me, 'What is this?' I say, 'I'm not quite too sure.'
'People make whatever they want to do these days. That's their little hobby, or whatever.
'Don't believe it.'
The fake twins story was far from the only fabricated post involving the Raiders.
1The fake twins story was one of several fabricated reports involving Raiders players and officials shared across social media
The sporting power couple became engaged in late 2025 after meeting as teenagers at a youth rugby sevens tournament
Other false reports claimed Canberra captain Joe Tapine was building houses for underprivileged children, that NSW Origin representative Ethan Strange had been suspended for four years and that coach Ricky Stuart had confirmed Laurie Daley would return to the club as head coach.
The Raiders have previously raised concerns with both the NRL and Facebook, but the club has struggled to stop the spread of the content. New pages and accounts often emerge shortly after existing posts are removed.
Weekes' fiancée Ashby is one of Australia's most accomplished female athletes.
The 25-year-old recently signed with the Cronulla Sharks' NRLW side after spending seven years in Australia's rugby sevens program.
Ashby represented Australia at the Tokyo Olympics and won Commonwealth Games gold before helping the national sevens team return to the top of the world rankings.
Earlier this month she announced her return to rugby league with Cronulla, the club where she won a Tarsha Gale Cup premiership in 2018.
The sporting power couple have been together since meeting at a youth rugby sevens tournament as teenagers and became engaged late last year.
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
