The rioting was sparked by allegations of sexual assault on Han women by Uyghurs, and rumours of an incident in which two female Han workers were sexually assaulted by six Uyghur co-workers at the factory, according to Voice of America.[23] The authorities said that the rumours were false, and had been initiated by a disgruntled former co-worker.[2][24] Xinhua said that a man surnamed Zhu "faked the information to express his discontent" over failing to find new work after quitting his job at the factory.[15]