The Greater Houston area was on edge on Monday after a man, who was initially falsely reported by a freelance reporter to be a Black male hanging from a tree, was found to actually not be Black at all.
The Hispanic/Caucasian man was found hanging from a tree in a field outside of a store located at Ella Boulevard and 610 North, around 9 am.
A video of the man hanging from the tree went viral on social media, and became a major touch point for people who viewed the video.
A significant number of people, especially Black people, responded to the initial news reports with anger and concern, believing it was a Black man that was hanged.
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences will do an autopsy to identify the deceased man’s identity and provide an official cause of death.
