A hunting guide and his client accidentally shot each other and then blamed it on undocumented migrants, police in the US have said.
Officers attended the scene at a remote south Texas ranch, near to the Mexico border, in early January, finding the two men bleeding from gunshot wounds.
The casualties, guide Walker Daughtery, 26, and client Edwin Roberts, 59, and the other guide, Michael Bryant, told police they suspected the shooters were undocumented immigrants they had seen on the ranch earlier in their trip.
Their story was shared thousands of times online after Texas Commissioner of Agriculture and Donald Trump ally Sid Miller wrote about it on Facebook.
But police and a grand jury have now concluded the men were lying about the incident, and actually shot each other.
Investigators believe that Mr Daughtery became paranoid that illegal immigrants were inside a vehicle with Mr Roberts and his wife and attempted to get inside without saying anything, prompting Mr Roberts to shoot at the door.
Mr Daughtery then ran back to his cabin to grab his gun and to get backup from Mr Bryant, and together they opened fire on the truck.
Mr Daughtery and Mr Bryant have both been indicted on third-degree felony charges, punishable by up to five years in prison.
After the alleged attack, a family friend setup a GoFundMe page stating that Mr Daughtery and his group were involved in a shoot-out with some illegal immigrants that were trying to steal his RV with his clients still inside it.
The appeal, to help pay for Mr Daughtery's medical bills as he is uninsured, raised over $26,000 (more than £20,000) before it was shut down.
