Stamford, Connecticut - Officials in Stamford, Conn., are struggling with how to handle what appears to be a military hoax, after a mysterious woman phoned a local volunteer fire department announcing that her son had died while serving in Iraq.
The Glenbrook Volunteer Fire Department received the call on Nov. 29 from a tearful woman claiming to be the mother of a former volunteer, who said, "Gabe is dead."
The fire department unfurled its mourning bunting and identified the man as Gabriel Costello, making an announcement on its Internet system that the U.S. Ranger had died serving in Iraq. The news soon spread, first to an online scanner site, ScanCT.com, and then the media.
But there was one problem.
The U.S. Army had no record of a Gabriel Costello in its ranks, let alone in Iraq, and no one died on the date in question. Full Story - Discount Magazine Subscription Specials - Discount Cigarettes & Tobacco - Critics' Choice Video
The Glenbrook Volunteer Fire Department received the call on Nov. 29 from a tearful woman claiming to be the mother of a former volunteer, who said, "Gabe is dead."
The fire department unfurled its mourning bunting and identified the man as Gabriel Costello, making an announcement on its Internet system that the U.S. Ranger had died serving in Iraq. The news soon spread, first to an online scanner site, ScanCT.com, and then the media.
But there was one problem.
The U.S. Army had no record of a Gabriel Costello in its ranks, let alone in Iraq, and no one died on the date in question. Full Story - Discount Magazine Subscription Specials - Discount Cigarettes & Tobacco - Critics' Choice Video
