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Walmart Gang Initiation: Shooting Texts a Mass Urban Legend Hoax
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by Tina Kells | March 19, 2009 at 02:21 pm
62319 views | 38 Recommendations | 458 comments
Reports of a text message about a gang initiation stunt requiring the random shooting of people at a Walmart are a hoax. (See the comments stream below for a growing list of people in different parts of the United States and Canada who have received this hoax text)
Please continue to add any reports of text messages received to the comments stream below. This story appears to be a bigger issue than first reported and the fear it is generating is very real. People are texting and messaging loved ones and friends, "don't go to Walmart" and the hoax is testing the limits of viral fear.
Rumors of plans for a Walmart gang initiation shooting spree in Springfield, Kentucky were reported by some local media outlets. Kentucky police immediately responded that they had received no such reports but people remained panicked.
Many people called KY3 News starting about 2:15 p.m. Thursday to say they received this text message on their cellular telephones: "do not go to wal-mart tonight. gang initiation to shoot 3 women. not sure what wal-mart and confirmed on TV."
This message is a hoax. Springfield police know nothing about it. KY3 News did not report it or start the text message.
Snopes.com, which debunks or verifies electronically-spread rumors spread, says this hoax, or a variant of it, has been around since 2005.
More reports of other planned Walmart shootings popped up in other states suggesting the urban legend may be part of a targeted rumor spreading spree. Police in Florida were also dealing with false reports of a gang initiation shooting in an Orange County Walmart store.
The messages claim that either on Wednesday night or Thursday three women and possibly two men would be murdered at a Florida Walmart parking lot as part of a gang initiation
Officials in South Florida said it’s nothing but a rumor that's been going on for years.
On Wednesday evening, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said they haven’t heard of the rumor in this area, but then again it’s nothing to worry about.
A spokesperson with Walmart said Wednesday the company is aware of the e-mail.
They told News 13 the security of its employees and customers are a top priority, and even though they believe this is just a rumor, they are taking it seriously and working with local authorities to beef up security measures.
Officials also said the age of technology could be why this rumor is spreading so quickly as people simply forward the email to their friends and family.
Photos
The Walmart shooting hoax is well known to police as an urban legend. The idea of a random shooting spree as a gang initiation first made the rounds in 2005 and continues to pop up from time to time.
Known as the Wal-Martyred hoax it usually includes a text message being sent claiming a woman, child or elderly person will be killed by gang wannabes. The latest incarnation of this urban legend had gang initiates targeting three women in a Walmart shooting spree.
WAL-MARTYRED
Claim: Gang initiates must assault or kill a woman, child or elderly person at a Wal-mart.
FALSE
E-mails circulated, warning of deadly gang initiations involving the killing of women and children who were shopping at Walmart.
But no such slayings were ever reported, Snopes reports.But like the e-mails telling of gang initiations the involve the killing of drivers who flash their headlights at oncoming cars or the dire warnings a couple of years ago how new gang members are knocking on doors and killing whoever answers, the rumor just keeps on trucking.
Over the year, it has circulated with variations and "new" details, as such e-mail hoaxes tend to do.
UPDATES:
The story of the Walmart gang initiation hoax texts continues to deepen. A growing number of reports have surfaced across the United States about various text messages of this nature being received (see comment stream below). It appears that this is a massive shooting hoax that is occurring nationwide.
A comment made to this story suggested a shooting in Chattanooga had happened but further investigation by NowPublic revealed it was also part of the hoax.
Several local law enforcement agencies are reassuring the public that reports of a shooting at a Wal-Mart is nothing but a hoax.
Sergeant Jerri Weary with Chattanooga Police says her department received several phone calls reporting a text message about a shooting at the Hamilton Place Wal-Mart as part of a gang initiation. Sgt Weary said it's nothing but a hoax that's been reported in several states but has not proved to be valid. She says the text warning was sent out Wednesday advising people to stay away from Wal-Mart because people would be shot and killed. Sgt Weary emphasized there have been no reported incidents at any of the Chattanooga area Wal-Marts.
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at 18:11 on March 19th, 2009
I live in rockford illinois and just received the same text....
at 18:11 on March 19th, 2009
i just heard that today i live in Ohio and 2 people got shot at one of our walmarts
at 18:12 on March 19th, 2009
Yep, just got it in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Nothing like that ever happens here.
at 18:12 on March 19th, 2009
Cullman, Alabama. Just got this text earlier! Hope it's not true, but txted friends just incase.
at 18:12 on March 19th, 2009
I got this text too...Los Angeles, California.
Man, I wonder how slow Wal-Mart business will be today.
at 18:16 on March 19th, 2009
Just got the same text in NJ......But i called the police station and they said that it was real...i am a little scared
at 18:16 on March 19th, 2009
i've been online trying to find out if this was a true story or not... i've got the text message from like 3 people today, but why today if supposively this hoax has been going around for years?
at 10:11 on March 20th, 2009
Because a) people keep forwarding it and b) someone "restarted" it.
at 18:16 on March 19th, 2009
Wow - I'm amazed at how widespread these texts appear to be. Thanks everyone for your comments.
at 18:18 on March 19th, 2009
I got the same message about shooting at Walmart tonight and the gang wannabe's would shoot 3 women...I live in Gainesville, GA! WOW it goes around quick!
at 18:20 on March 19th, 2009
i got the same text message tonight about the gangs..i've had this text once before sometime late last year. and i live in michigan
at 18:20 on March 19th, 2009
I GOT THE SAME MESSAGE IN BAUXITE, ARKANSAS!
at 18:21 on March 19th, 2009
i got the same message from my friends and i live in NJ
at 18:24 on March 19th, 2009
Santa Clara/ San Jose, CA, and we have this text spreading all around campus. They even had staff warning girls not to go to Walmart tonight! LOL
at 18:25 on March 19th, 2009
I live in NH and just got the message from a friend in CA
at 18:25 on March 19th, 2009
there wasnt any shooting at our walmart but i did see three black guy stealing watermelons.they try to steal the koo aid but the store employees were restocking the grape flavor ones at the time
at 18:25 on March 19th, 2009
I just got it in Springfield Ohio.
at 18:30 on March 19th, 2009
i got this txt and im from riverside, california
at 18:31 on March 19th, 2009
I got this message yesterday and I live in College Station, TX. I also was told that 10 women were killed in a drive by at a walmart in Huntsville, TX. Has anyone heard anything about that? I can find anything on it so I just assume that it is false. I wonder how long it would take a good text to get around the world.
at 18:36 on March 19th, 2009
We live in Florida and have been getting the message since yesterday.......hopefully its not true! =)
at 18:40 on March 19th, 2009
Just got the message in Buffalo NY
at 18:47 on March 19th, 2009
i got the text message today too.
i'm from CA.
at 18:48 on March 19th, 2009
I got this text 2 times tongiht. im in a suburb of chicago in illinios. My aunt first sent it to me.
at 18:51 on March 19th, 2009
hurry up and go to wal mart
quit being scared!
i just got back from wal mart
when its your time its your time
wheather your at wal mart or neiman marcus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
at 18:53 on March 19th, 2009
My girlfriend got 3 of the same messages from her friends from the Alton IL. and St. Louis, Mo. Areas.
at 18:54 on March 19th, 2009
I also received the same text this afternoon about 2:45pm
at 18:55 on March 19th, 2009
I got the text message earlier, and I live in Eminence Ky. Hoax or not, someone needs to get to the bottom of it! I found it very uncomforting, since I recieved the message while I was at work, I do work at Wal Mart so you can only imagine the thoughts going through my head as I walked to the car!
at 18:57 on March 19th, 2009
i just got the message too and I am taking it very seriously though it might be a prank...but i dont want to take risks with my life. Someone might just act on this foolishness. i forwarded the texts to friends around and some replied with 'lol'.
at 18:58 on March 19th, 2009
whaaaat the heck,! yeeno i was so terrified. im 13, from Hawaii, and i was crying about it ;D ahahaha, this is because im religious and all, and what if it was real, and someone i knw got 'shot' psssh, im glad its a hoax, or JOKE, and i pray it is, because i bet al least half the peoplke in the world got this, and whoever made it up i hope gets kaaarma or locked up! srsly, i cried and took it seriously, >_____< i got three msgs,
at 18:59 on March 19th, 2009
Your smoing POT if you believe this crap its said to have happened everywhere and it just so happens to be happening in every state! BULLSHIT!!!