Was 45-year-old Michael Bigson arrested while trying to pawn jewellery belonging to rapper Tekashi69 (aka 6ix9ine) after the singer was robbed, kidnapped and beaten up earlier today? No, that's not true, at least the part about a suspect being arrested. The robbery and kidnapping did take place but the story about the arrest was made up by a "fauxtire" site that fabricates stories in order to make money from advertising. It did not happen for real.
The story originated from an article published by Huzlers on July 22, 2018 titled "1 Suspect Caught For The Robbing And Kidnapping Of Tekashi69 After Trying To Pawn Jewelry" (archived here) which opened:
Michael Bigson 45, was caught earlier today while trying to pawn the jewelry he was told to wait while one of the manager called the police after he recognized the jewelry of be of rapper Tekashi 69.
Tekashi 69 who already suffers from mental retardation is in stable condition but doctors will perform more CT scans.
The rest of the article is mostly copied from a real TMZ report about Tekashi69 being robbed (which has already been updated with a different version of the incident):
Tekashi69 Pistol Whipped, Kidnapped, Robbed and Hospitalized
Tekashi69 Pistol Whipped, Kidnapped, Robbed and Hospitalized Tekashi69 was kidnapped, pistol whipped and robbed and is now in the hospital ... TMZ has learned. Sources close to Tekashi tell us, the rapper was working on a music video in Brooklyn early Sunday morning and at around 4AM he wrapped for the night and drove home.
But the picture of the suspect has been circulating online since at least 2012 in various galleries containing weird mugshots:
16 results - TinEye
Compare your search image to your result image. Quickly click the "Switch" button to switch back and forth between the two images and see the differences.
And Huzlers styles itself as a "fauxtire" website and carries a disclaimer at the bottom of each page:
Huzlers.com is the most infamous fauxtire & satire entertainment website in the world. If it's trending on social media you'll find it here!
According to Splinter News the site is run by Pablo Reyes and David Martinez and according to Buzzfeed Reyes is involved with several other fake news websites. They tend to shy away from political stories, opting instead to write for a more "urban" audience, with stories about rappers, criminals and celebrities.
We wrote about huzlers.com before, here are our most recent articles that mention the site:
- Fake News: Woman Who Hasn't Had Sex In 120 Days Did NOT Crash Car Just To Feel Choked Again
- Fake News: Florida Man NOT Arrested For Tranquilizing And Raping Alligators In Everglades
- Fake News: McDonald's Manager Did NOT Shoot Man For Putting Soda In His Free Water Cup
- Fake News: White Woman Did NOT Call Cops On Innocent Man Selling Crack Cocaine Outside Her Apartment
- Fake News: NO Alabama Man In Custody After Promising Kids V-Bucks, Did NOT Sexually Abuse Them
