Media fooled by hoax site claiming New York bomber is militant gay activist
A site went viral yesterday with apparently hoax claims that the bomb attacks in New York were carried out by a militant gay activist.
Two pressure cooker bombs were planted in Saturday in New York. The first bomb detonated in the Chelsea district of Manhattan, injuring 29.
The second was discovered nearby and removed safely.
Authorities are still investigating the source of the bombs, amid uncertainty over their connection to organisation terror, if any.
Amid speculation, a number of media sources reported the existence of a Tumblr blog they alleged was supposedly written by the bomber.
It claimed: “You probably have all seen the news by now, the explosives detonated in New York City, that was me. I did it because I cannot stand society. I cannot live in a world where homosexuals like myself as well as the rest of the LGBTQ+ community are looked down upon by society.
“This is not the end. This is just the beginning. I will be remembered. I will make a difference. I will eliminate my targets before it is too late.”
“The explosives detonated in New York City, that was me. Those were just some tests, I know where I have made errors and I will not make the same mistake next time.
It continued: “I don’t know exactly how I feel about taking human lives. I suppose I’m just going to have to move forward knowing that what I am doing had a purpose and will in fact make a difference.”
Outlets including the New York Daily News, Daily Mail, and the Metro all rushed to report the sensational claims – even though they were quickly determined to be a hoax.
The Daily Beast reported that the bigoted ‘Alt-Right’ movement appeared to be the first to seize upon the blog, which first surfaced on notoriously untrustworthy internet message board 4Chan.
AP confirmed that federal investigators had quickly discounted the blog’s claim of responsibility, confirming that “investigators looked into it and don’t consider it relevant to the case”.
