The allegations are disturbing enough, but now when we start seeing other people falsifying accusations it creates a greater problem, because it adds to the chilling effect on other victims.
Zach Tomaselli, the third man to bring forth allegations of molestation against Bernie Fine, admitted to falsifying emails he forwarded to The Daily Orange and another media outlet.
Tomaselli, 23, of Lewiston, Maine, told The Daily Orange on Friday he doctored multiple emails and forwarded them to The Daily Orange and The Post-Standard in hopes the news outlets would report on them, resulting in more public support of his claims against Fine.
“The biggest reason is support,” Tomaselli said. “I felt like there was so much stuff that people didn’t know. The police were telling me that they knew my father was lying, but there’s no way for me to get that out. And that’s the only thing I could think of.”
The emails Tomaselli admitted to altering were made to look like they had been sent from the email account of Syracuse Police Department Detective Clark Farry to Tomaselli’s personal account. But before forwarding the emails, Tomaselli said he made changes and additions.
“I made a mistake,” Tomaselli said. “I made up a couple of lies, and it’s really biting me now.”
In text messages to The Daily Orange on Friday afternoon, Tomaselli said he plans to ask Syracuse police to end the Bernie Fine investigation.
“Im guna ask the police to end the bernie fine investigation. I’m done,” he wrote in one text message.
“But he did do it. Im not lying,” Tomaselli said in a second message.
The first email that Tomaselli admitted to doctoring is dated Nov. 25, 2011, and was made to look like it had been sent from Farry to Tomaselli. The sentence Tomaselli specifically mentioned as being inserted called Tomaselli’s father a “liar” and a “sick man,” and gave forth belief that Tomaselli was molested by him.
A second email altered by Tomaselli was dated Dec. 16, 2011 and was also made to look like Farry had sent it. The sentence he specifically mentioned as being inserted said that there was proof Tomaselli had been in Pittsburgh through game video and a staff member’s confession.
