Fanapt Hoax Hides Real Connection Between Shooters And SSRI Drugs

The fact that Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza was about to committed into psychiatric care before his rampage almost certainly indicates he was on one of the raft of anti-psychotic pharmaceuticals linked to aggression and suicide, but reports that Fanapt was the drug are likely inaccurate.

The original source for the claim that Lanza was on Fanapt appears to have been a New York Daily News article first published on Sunday afternoon and then revised on Monday morning.

The initial version of the story prompted the New York Magazine to cite the NY Daily News in reporting that “Adam’s uncle….said he was taking an anti-psychotic drug called Fanapt.” The story was then picked up by numerous other outlets.

However, the latest version of the NY Daily News article contains no mention of the uncle or the drug Fanapt.

It’s almost certain that the original version of the article did mention this before being amended, and that the NY Mag piece was based on the original NY Daily News piece.

The reason for it being removed was likely the fact, as reported by Democratic Underground, that the claim that Lanza was on Fanapt was allegedly made not by Lanza’s real uncle, but by an Internet troll who reportedly inserts himself into every mass shooting story by posing as a family member of the killer.

Whether this piece of misinformation will be used by the establishment media to characterize claims that Lanza was on anti-psychotics as a baseless conspiracy theory remains to be seen.

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