Wilson Police warns of fake press releases about Cannon Hinnant case on Facebook
Fake press releases regarding the Cannon Hinnant case are being spread online, the Wilson Police Department warned the public Friday.
In a case that’s drawn national attention, the 5-year-old boy died from a gunshot wound Aug. 9 at his home in Wilson. Darius Sessoms, 25, of Goldsboro has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
The Wilson Police Department said in a Facebook post Friday night that the fraudulent press releases, which appear to be from the department, were being shared online. Wilson Police encouraged those who see the posts to report them to Facebook.
“The Wilson Police Department has been made aware of numerous posts containing false information circulating on social media, including some posts that look like they were releases from investigators,” the police department said in a statement. “These are fraudulent posts. You can help us by reporting these fraudulent releases to Facebook so they can be removed.”
The fake posts, which can still be found on Facebook as screenshots, contain numerous spelling and grammatical errors and dispute certain aspects of the case.
The Wilson Police Department said official press releases can only be found on the department’s website.
This story was originally published August 15, 2020 at 3:06 PM with the headline "Wilson Police warns of fake press releases about Cannon Hinnant case on Facebook."
