Fake News: "P.O.P, Hold It Down" Woman Donna Goudeau NOT Murdered In Prison

Fact Check

  • by: Maarten Schenk
Fake News: "P.O.P, Hold It Down" Woman Donna Goudeau NOT Murdered In Prison

Was "P.O.P, Hold It Down" woman Donna Goudeau murdered in prison? No, that's not true: that story was put out five years ago by a site that publishes fictional news but it got recycled in 2019 by a relatively new website.

The story reappeared via an article (archived here) published by Urban Industry News on July 18, 2019 under the title '"P.O.P, Hold It Down" Woman Donna Goudeau Allegedly Murdered In Prison'. It opened:

PORT ARTHUR, TX - It is being reported that Donna Goudeau, the woman who is known for saying "POP Hold it down", "barely", and "I'm legally blind", was stabbed to death earlier today in prison after apparently getting into a fight with another inmate, who happened to have a hidden blade.

Donna Goudeau became popular in 2014 after footage of her arrest in 2011 went viral on the internet. Donna Goudeau, Keyron DeWayne Elmore and Jeremy Jomard Goudeau were arrested for the beating, robbing and stabbing of a 73-year-old Kansas man by the name of Juan Sustiata. Donna was sentenced to 18 years in prison and was scheduled to be released in 2029.

Word for word the exact same story appeared in 2014 on Huzlers (except for the "allegedly" in the title):

"P.O.P, Hold It Down" Woman Donna Goudeau Murdered In Prison

PORT ARTHUR, TX - It is being reported that Donna Goudeau, the woman who is known for saying "POP Hold it down", "barely", and "I'm legally blind", was stabbed to death earlier today in prison after apparently getting into a fight with another inmate, who happened to have a hidden blade.

It was posted under the category "Fictional News" and Huzlers styles itself as a "fauxtire" website with a disclaimer at the bottom of each page:

Huzlers is a fauxtire and fictional news blog that focuses on celebrities, hip hop and urban entertainment.

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.

According to the Texas Tribune Goudeau will still be in prison until 2029:

Donna Renee Goudeau | Texas Prison Inmates | The Texas Tribune

Information about Donna Renee Goudeau's imprisonment in the Murray Unit.

This appears to be the video that made her famous in 2014:


  Maarten Schenk

Lead Stories co-founder Maarten Schenk is our resident expert on fake news and hoax websites. He likes to go beyond just debunking trending fake news stories and is endlessly fascinated by the dazzling variety of psychological and technical tricks used by the people and networks who intentionally spread made-up things on the internet.  He can often be found at conferences and events about fake news, disinformation and fact checking when he is not in his office in Belgium monitoring and tracking the latest fake article to go viral.

Read more about or contact Maarten Schenk

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