Explosive allegations about Donald Trump made by online writers with large followings among Trump critics were based on bogus information from a hoaxer who falsely claimed to work in law enforcement.
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Claude Taylor tweeted fake details of criminal inquiries into Trump that were invented by a source whose claim to work for the New York attorney general was not checked, according to emails seen by the Guardian. The allegations were endorsed as authentic and retweeted by his co-writer Louise Mensch.
The sources false tips included an allegation, which has been aggressively circulated by Mensch and Taylor, that Trumps inactive fashion model agency is under investigation by New York authorities for possible sex trafficking.
The hoaxer, who fed the information to Taylor by email, said she acted out of frustration over the dissemination of fake news by Taylor and Mensch. Their false stories about Trump have included a claim that he was already being replaced as president by Senator Orrin Hatch in a process kept secret from the American public.
Taylor asked no questions to verify my identity, did no vetting whatsoever, sought no confirmation from a second source but instead asked leading questions to support his various theories, asking me to verify them, the source said in an email.
After being approached for comment by the Guardian on Monday, Taylor posted what he described as a mea culpa on Twitter. As a citizen journalist I acknowledge my error and do apologize, he wrote.
