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It could have been poetic ustice—but it’s not true.
The internet was fooled by false rumors that rapper Kendrick Lamar bought the gun George Zimmerman used to kill Trayvon Martin and destroyed it on stage with a hammer to put an end to firearm’s senseless sale.
FILE - In this Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2013, file photo, George Zimmerman, acquitted in the high-profile killing of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, listens in court, in Sanford, Fla., during his hearing. The pistol former neighborhood watch volunteer Zimmerman used in the fatal shooting of Martin is going up for auction online.
The auction begins Thursday, May 12, 2016, at 11 a.m.
EDT and the bidding starts at $5,000.
(AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool, File)
(Joe Burbank/AP)
A story published on Freddymag.com, a site that refers to itself as the “Number One in Satirical Urban Culture News,” was the origin of the hearsay and managed to fool music blogs and innumerable social media users who perpetuated the myth.
Kendrick Lamar did not buy that gun Lmaoo you guys really believe that
— free brady (@SenseiAndre) May 17, 2016
The phony article used a made-up quote from the m.A.A.d city rapper, calling it “the socially conscious thing to do” and an account that the firearm gave Lamar the “heebee jeebees” as soon as he touched it.
Aye s/o to Kendrick Lamar if he really did buy that ***'s gun so he could stop being glorified for being evil. KL you're a real hero!!
— SB (@stellabella1908) May 17, 2016
Lamar’s publicist didn’t immediately respond to a request to formally deny the rumors, but the complete absence of a single photo or video of Lamar destroying the gun and the fact that the weapon is still up for sale online, are good indicators that the story isn't true.
just so everyone knows, @kendricklamar DID NOT buy George Zimmerman's gun. Don't believe everything you hear on the internet
— snack miller (@brandon_bryan_) May 17, 2016
Zimmerman initially put the gun used to kill the Florida teen in 2012 up for sale on GunBroker.com, almost immediately after the Department of Justice returned it to him.
FILE- In this June 28, 2013, file photo, Sanford police officer Timothy Smith holds up the gun that was used to kill Trayvon Martin, while testifying in the George Zimmerman trial, in Seminole circuit court in Sanford, Fla. The pistol former neighborhood watch volunteer Zimmerman used in the fatal shooting of Martin is going up for auction online. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool, File)
(Joe Burbank/AP)
A REMINDER THAT GEORGE ZIMMERMAN IS A CANCER TO SOCIETY
Furious trolls with phony accounts skyrocketed the bids to $66 million, causing the site to boot the auction.
He’s now taking his third crack at selling the Kel-Tec PF-9 9mm, now that the gun is back on the auction block at United Gun Group— after initially getting kicked off.
With a day left in the auction, a bidding war between two prospective buyers calling themselves John Smith and Rae Sisterman has pushed the price to nearly $200,000.
The sale ends Wednesday morning.