A former county commissioner candidate in Oregon admits that he wrote a racist letter to himself after claiming it came from an anonymous person, according to police.
A criminal investigation was launched after Jonathan Lopez, a former Umatilla County commissioner candidate, posted an allegedly “racist and derogatory” letter he received in the mail on Facebook late last month.
“Don't waste your time trying to become anything in this county we will make sure you never win and your family suffers along with all the other f****** Mexicans in the area,” a portion of the letter said.
Lopez responded to the letter supposedly directed at him, saying that he held “no resentment for whomever wrote this” and that he was “[heartbroken] for the lack of knowledge, education and respect missing”.
According to the Daily Caller, the Hermiston Police Department opened an investigation into the incident, later concluding the letter had been faked by Lopez.
“Our investigation has shown that Mr. Lopez wrote the letter himself and made false statements to the police and on social media. The end result is a verbal and written admission by Mr. Lopez that the letter was fabricated,” Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edminston said in an email to the East Oregonian.
Lopez claimed he never meant to file a police report, that it all “kind of spiraled out [of control]”.
The case has been forwarded to the Umatilla County District Attorney for review. Filing a false police report is a Class A misdemeanor in Oregon.