A student at SUNY Albany who claimed to be a victim of a racial attack has admitted to fabricating the story — another in a long line of hate crime hoaxes.
Alexis Briggs and fellow students Ariel Aguido and Asha Burwell claimed that they were taunted with racial abuse and slurs while riding a bus in late January. In an ironic turn of events, video footage of the bus ride showed that no racial abuse had taken place. In fact, the women themselves were charged with misdemeanor assault and with false reporting of an incident. SUNY Albany has expelled Aguido and Burwell while Briggs has received a two year suspension.
Briggs gave a tearful apology to the court, admitting to fabricating the story in order to receive a plea deal that would allow her to avoid any jail time. The student will however have to complete 100 hours of community service.
Briggs also stated that she “never anticipated the tremendous attention that would be given to this story or the far-reaching effect it would have.” Aguido and Burwell rejected plea agreements and could face up to two sentences.
Lucas Nolan is a Journalism and Media student at Dublin Business School and a regular contributor to Breitbart Tech. He can be contacted via Twitter here: @LucasNolan_