Racist hate crime near Kansas State University actually just another hoax

A recent "hate crime" near Kansas State University, which prompted action from students, has turned out to be a hoax.

What happened?

According to the Kansas City Star, the Riley County Police Department was called to an apartment complex near KSU last Wednesday. When they arrived, they found a black man’s car covered in racist graffiti.

The N-word was spray painted on the car several times, along with other derogatory statements like, “die,” “whites only,” boy,” “date your own kind,” among others.

In today's K-State racist news... pic.twitter.com/8Ebt1xJOLq

— Des. (@JustDesmund) November 1, 2017

The incident led black students on campus to organize and begin a dialogue about racism near the campus. University police also increased patrols and considered installing additional security cameras across the campus. The FBI even got involved in the investigation, likely because it appeared to be a hate crime, according to the Associated Press.

When was the truth revealed?

According to the Star, the car’s owner, 21-year-old Dauntarius Williams, admitted to police this week that he was responsible for the graffiti.

And despite filing a false police report, officials chose not to charge Williams for breaking the law because doing so would not “be in the best interest” of the city's residents, according to the Star.

What does Williams have to say?

Police said Williams has expressed sincere remorse and regret for his actions.

He said in a statement:

I would like to deeply apologize to the community. The whole situation got out of hand when it shouldn’t have even started. It was just a Halloween prank that got out of hand. I wish I could go back to that night but I can’t. I just want to apologize from the bottom of my heart for the pain and news I have brought you all.

What did the police say?

Despite Williams’ hoax, police went easy on him because they recognize he made a young, dumb mistake.

Riley County Police Director Brad Schoen said: "While Williams’ mistake had a decidedly negative impact on the community, please recognize that he, like many of us when we were young, is a young man who made a mistake and is now doing his best to own up to it."