A West Virginia man who claimed to have been shot hitchhiking across the country while writing a book on kindness in the United States has admitted the whole incident was a hoax.
Authorities say that 39-year-old Roy Dolin shot himself in the arm as a desperate ploy to garner attention for the book he was writing, titled Kindness in America. Police believe Dolin shot himself and then created an elaborate story about a man driving a maroon colored pick-up truck pulling up and shooting him without provocation as he walked along a desolate stretch of Montana road last week.
Authorities later arrested Lloyd Christopher Danielson III, 52, and charged him with felony assault in connection with the crime. Dolin would finally admit that he had made the entire incident up, and charges have been dropped against Danielson, who remains in jail on unrelated drug charges.
Before admitting it was all just a hoax, Dolin talked at great length with reporters from around the world about the alleged crime, claiming he was writing a photographic coffee table book detailing how kindness still existed in the heart of America. He would go on to cite several incidences of spontaneous kindness he had experienced during his journey across the country, although those claims are now suspect. He also told reporters that the attack had not changed his mind that kindness still existed in the nation.
It is believed his main motive was to gather enough attention to score a high-dollar book advance from a publishing house as well selling movie rights to his story.
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