Politics & Government

Name That Hoax: Ramona Retiree Caught Up in Fake Press Release Case

Dexter Haight said "smoke came out of his ears" when he found his name was being appropriated.

It was a hoax within a hoax—and it led to “smoke pouring out” of the ears of a 75-year-old Ramona man.

Dexter Haight, a Navy retiree on the board of directors of the Lemon Grove Rod and Gun Club, saw his name used in connection with a fake email sent by backers of medical marijuana, according to U-T San Diego.

“A man claiming to be Dexter Haight, from the so-called Federal Accountability Coalition, claimed responsibility for the hoax” involving a Tuesday press release supposedly sent by San Diego U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy saying pharmacies in beach areas would be closed due to high rates of prescription drug abuse, U-T San Diego said.

Find out what's happening in Ramonawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The San Diego Reader, in reporting on the original hoax, quoted the fake Dexter Haight as saying: “The media was not the target in this. We want to hold the government, and the U.S. Attorney, accountable for their policies. We thought satire was the best way to do that.”

In a video (attached), a man much younger than Haight is seen saying: “My name in Dexter Haight, and I’m with the Federal Accountability Coalition. .. FAC is here to claim responsibility for the press releases that were sent out.”

Find out what's happening in Ramonawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In fact, as , Dexter Haight was Dave White, an artist who in 2007 founded the Agitprop Gallery of San Diego. (See second attached video.)

When a friend emailed the real Haight the story using his name, “That’s when smoke started pouring out of my ears. It was just very disconcerting,” U-T San Diego quoted him as saying Wednesday.

Haight told the paper he’s willing to testify in court to help prosecute the hoaxers if a crime were committed.

Haight opposes drug use, and told the paper that his wife, Michael Ann, “spent many years working for the county’s drug and alcohol services as an analyst and helped create the methamphetamine strike force.”

U-T San Diego said it did not use Haight’s name in the print newspaper and “used it only briefly in the online story.”


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