TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - A lawsuit that was originally believed to have been filed by Jared Loughner, the gunman who shot former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011, has been confirmed as a hoax.
"It's our understanding that the lawsuit was not filed or authorized by Mr. Loughner," U.S. Department of Justice spokesman Cosme Lopez said via email. "Earlier today, Mr. Loughner's counsel wrote a letter to the Court confirming this understanding. Instead, it appears that a third party may have misappropriated Mr. Loughner's identity for purposes of filing the lawsuit. Federal criminal law prohibits such conduct."
Jared Lee Loughner's name is on lawsuit against former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords for emotional and psychological damage. Loughner shot Giffords in the head.
In the suit, filed March 18 in U.S. District Court, Loughner claims that he is illegally incarcerated and the victim of a conspiracy. He says government agents put a chip in his head to control his mind.
After checking, Nine On Your Side deduced Wednesday that the lawsuit was a hoax.
Here is why.
A lawsuit was filed for $10 million dollars against Uber by someone claiming to be Jason Dalton, the man who allegedly shot and killed six people in Kalamazoo, Mich. Last week, a man came out saying he is the one who filed the lawsuit.
He filed dozens if not hundreds of similar lawsuits in the past.
Nine On Your Side compared the envelope from the Loughner lawsuit to the one mailed in the Dalton lawsuit to show they are similar.
First, the postmark on each envelope is from Philadelphia, but Dalton was in Michigan and Loughner is in a facility in Minnesota. Additionally, the same three stamps were used in the Loughner suit as the Dalton suit. The handwriting on each envelope appears to be similar.
The case is filed with the United States District Court in Phoenix. It was assigned to a judge, but it will be up to the judge to continue with the lawsuit or dismiss it.
