A Colorado man who claimed he was stabbed by an antifa militant because of his neo-Nazi haircut now admits he made up the whole story.
Joshua Witt, 26, a U.S. Navy boatswain’s mate, was booked by Sheridan police Thursday on a summons charging him with false reporting. He confessed his earlier report that he was the victim of a stabbing was false, according to the Denver Post.
Witt told police he was attacked Aug. 16 while in the parking lot of a Steak ’n Shake. Actually, he cut himself and made up a story about being stabbed by someone who asked if he was a neo-Nazi, according to the Denver Post.
“All I hear is, ‘Are you one of them neo-Nazis?’ as this dude is swinging a knife up over my car door at me,” Witt told the New York Post after the supposed stabbing. “I threw my hands up and once the knife kind of hit, I dived back into my car and shut the door and watched him run off west, behind my car.”
Witt described his attacker as a black man in his mid-20s, wearing a green shirt and blue pants.
Investigators reviewed surveillance video from the area, and found nothing resembling what Witt had described. Officers found a man matching the description provided by Witt ― a transient who was quickly cleared of any involvement, according to KUSA-TV.
Additional video showed something else: Witt exiting a sporting goods store near the Steak ’n Shake, where he had purchased a small knife.
Police questioned Witt again on Thursday. That’s when he admitted accidentally cutting himself with his new knife and making up the attack story, according to CBS Denver.
Witt said he was worried his insurance wouldn’t cover treatment for the cut if he admitted it was self-inflicted, Sheridan police Chief Mark Campbell told HuffPost.
If convicted, Witt faces a maximum fine of $2,650 and up to one year in jail.
America does not do a good job of tracking incidents of hate and bias. We need your help to create a database of such incidents across the country, so we all know what’s going on. Tell us your story.
Before You Go
