Authorities combating mountain of misinformation surrounding In-N-Out shooting
Published at | Updated at
TWIN FALLS – The In-N-Out shooting in Twin Falls over the weekend was very public, and it was well-documented by bystanders with phone cameras.
Most of those videos ended up online, sparking a firestorm of gossip, speculation, and misinformation for hours before any official verified information was released. False people were named as the shooter; people initially said there were three perpetrators, when there was only one, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The Twin Falls Police Department has issued statements setting the record straight on multiple issues, in an effort to combat this storm of misinformation.
“We ask the public to avoid making assumptions. … Sharing unverified information can cause serious harm to innocent people and their families,” reads the most recent update from the Twin Falls Police Department, posted to Facebook.
The incident began Saturday evening when a gunman opened fire in one of Twin Falls’ most busy commercial areas, causing hundreds of people to flee and take shelter in surrounding buildings. By the time the threat to the public was over, three people were dead, and seven more were injured.
The motivation of the gunman, identified as 24-year-old Chad Williams, is still under investigation.
RELATED | Witnesses share terrifying moments in hiding as Twin Falls gunman stalked them
But hours before Williams was identified by police, many in the public had already decided who the killer was. Twin Falls resident Amer Mandzic was falsely accused by many social media users of being the gunman.
In a Sunday press briefing, Police Chief Matthew Hicks clearly stated that Mandzic was not involved in the deadly shooting in any way.
“We have seen social media posts identifying the shooter as a gentleman named Amir Mandzic. This information is absolutely false. This gentleman has no involvement in this incident whatsoever,” Hicks said.
Additionally, Hicks clarified that Mandzic is not a member of the fire department, as he said some have incorrectly stated.
After that briefing, the police department made another post on Sunday evening, saying they were “aware of continued social media posts and reports incorrectly identifying Amer Mandzic as being involved in yesterday’s In-N-Out incident.”
“We are asking anyone who has posted or shared this misinformation to remove it immediately. This false information is placing undue stress on a member of our community and his family, who were not involved in the incident,” the post reads.
Misinformation about Mandzic is still online.
EastIdahoNews.com found a blog entry that was posted on Sunday, on obituaryhamlet.online, which not only misidentifies Mandzic as the shooter, but also asserts that authorities identified him as such. The post is credited to “Glenn Philips,” but the website doesn’t include any information about who that is.
And despite authorities setting the record straight, the post remains online. It’s unclear how many people have read the misinformation in this blog post.
The police have also had to set the record straight on a picture of a man who’s been incorrectly identified as Williams by social media users.
“We have been made aware of at least one individual with the same name as the suspect who is an active-duty military member and is now being harassed and falsely accused of being the shooter. This individual is not the suspect and is not involved in this incident,” reads the most recent post from the department.
The post goes on to say, “Any threats, harassment, or intimidation directed toward individuals who are not involved in this incident may result in legal charges.”
The police have not released much information on Williams. The department has said that Williams is now deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“The Williams family has been notified, and they are fully cooperating with law enforcement. Their hearts are also broken during this time,” Hicks said.
The department has also clarified that, based on its investigation, it is “confident” that Williams acted alone.
Early on, after the shooting had taken place, there were some false reports of there being multiple gunmen. This was because a citizen, who’s now been identified by the Idaho Statesman as Jordan Salinas, and a still unnamed off-duty police officer, engaged the gunmen by returning fire.
“We want to take a moment and commend the actions of the off-duty officer and the citizen, and their heroic action to stop this incident. We believe their actions helped drive the suspect away from the scene, preventing further casualties,” Hicks said.
RELATED | When gunshots rang out at a Twin Falls In-N-Out, Jordan Salinas shot back
The police, assisted by the FBI, continue to investigate this deadly shooting.
“Investigators are continuing to review the incident timeline, process evidence, and conduct interviews. Detectives are working on following leads and working with assisting agencies. At this time, we are still working to determine the full set of circumstances in this incident, including the suspect’s actions and possible motivations,” Hicks said.
