The person behind @LennayKay created the leukemia death story cause of @WhatIsCatfish
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jay.R (@jayRahz) December 04, 2012ESPN reportedly sat on the story of Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o's fake girlfriend for 10 days before Deadspin exposed the hoax on Wednesday. A Notre Dame spokesman said the school learned that Te’o's deceased girlfriend ”Lennay Kekua” wasn’t real on Dec. 26 when Te’o explained he was the “victim” of a hoax.
But as Twitchy reported yesterday, the news was floating around Twitter even earlier. On Dec. 3, a now-suspended Twitter user with the handle @catfishhhhhhhh tweeted, “Do a background check and you’ll see that not only did Lennay Marie Kekua not die, she never existed!”
An account currently suspended tweeted that the Manti Te'o – Lennay Kekua story was a hoax — in December. http://t.co/JWrCCgD2—
Miké (@ThePantau) January 16, 2013
As Twitter user Justin Megahan tweeted, that wasn’t the only December outing of Manti Te’o's phony Internet girlfriend.
Well looky here, a couple people who new Lennay was fake joking about it a month ago. twitter.com/jayRahz/status…—
Justin Megahan (@justinrmegahan) January 17, 2013
On Dec. 4, another Twitter account — with this story, we hesitate to call @jayRahz another person — indicated that Lennay’s existence was a hoax.
My fam & I have an idea who the guy is behind the @LennayKay profile & hes up there leading a worship band at his dad's church! SMFH—
jay.R (@jayRahz) December 04, 2012
BuzzFeed notes that “Titus Tuiasosopo, the father of Ronaiah, who Deadspin pointed to as the perpetrator of the hoax, is a pastor.” And Deadspin reported that “Te’o and Tuiasosopo definitely know each other.”
@jayRahz continued to tweet about the hoax in December and early January, sometimes with Twitter user @ceeweezy51.
@ceeweezy51 and if it starts raining imma sell you out and say you're Lennay Kekua lol—
jay.R (@jayRahz) December 12, 2012
@ceeweezy51 aka *goes back to running @LennayKay's profile* lmfao—
jay.R (@jayRahz) December 13, 2012
I wonder if the real Lennay Kekua is watching the game.. Cause I know the fake one that didn't die is not watching over the Irish! #Ronaiah—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 08, 2013
So, were @jayRahz and @ceeweezy51 in on the hoax? Are they even real? Are we real? Minds blown!
After the Deadspin story was published and people started digging even more, @jayRahz and @ceeweezy51 defended themselves on Twitter.
EVERY TWEET @jayrahz and I had about Lennay Kekua were all jokes. We knew from the beginning she was fake!—
C. (@ceeweezy51) January 17, 2013
Okay this is getting way out of hand.. everybody is tweeting that i had something to do with this scandal.. thats so far from the truth!—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
we caught Ronaiah's persona as Lennay Kekua back in 2008 and ended all ties with him..—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
i didnt even know Manti Teo's "girlfriend"'s name til way after she supposedly died.. when i found out it was Lennay.. i tweeted about it!—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
A few accounts tweeted me back w/ Ronaiah's picture and tagged @LennayKay which is how Ronaiah found out.. all I did was tweet..—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
everyone needs to hit up Ronaiah Tuiasosopo and get the truth.. the truth will set you free!!—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
@ceeweezy IS NOT LENNAY KEKUA.. thats all RONAIAH!!—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
I have the truth on my side so im not taking none of the mean things people are tweeting me seriously.. believe that!!—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
My tweets are not private because there is nothing to hide!! If i had secrets I would not be tweeting about it.. I mean, would you?—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
Perhaps we should have NOT been joking about being @LennayKay cause now people are really believing and retweeting it.—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
Yeah, well, hindsight and all that.
the TRUTH will come out on its own… and when it does.. everyone that tweeted mean things will understand a brotha.—
jay.R (@jayRahz) January 17, 2013
Another twist, via SBNation:
Ronaiah Tuiasosopo (@ronaiahhh) says to follow @iWorship (Oct. '11). That account follows two people: @LennayKay and @MTeo_5.—
Ryan Hudson (@ry_hudson) January 17, 2013
@iWorship <—My new account. Follow Me =) #Loveandpeace Out.—
Ronaiah Tuiasosopo (@ronaiahhh) May 17, 2011
The media are a lot more interested in the bizarre story of Te’o's imaginary girlfriend than digging into Benghazi and other stories of import.
More investigative journalism has been done in one month on Manti Te'o than on the Obama admin in four-plus years #Fact—
Jeff Schreiber (@AmericasRight) January 17, 2013
We have a feeling they’ll tease apart this tangled web.