Springfield, Ohio resident Anna Kilgore recently issued an apology to her Haitian neighbors after falsely accusing them of stealing her cat, Miss Sassy. Kilgore, who had initially suspected her neighbors of taking her pet, filed a police report last month. However, it turned out that Miss Sassy had been hiding in Kilgore’s basement the entire time.
After realizing the mistake, Kilgore used a translation app to apologize to her neighbors, as she shared in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. Despite the misunderstanding being cleared up, the incident fueled baseless conspiracy theories promoted by Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance and others, claiming that Haitian immigrants were stealing and eating pets in Springfield.
The rumors, which have been repeatedly debunked by local police, city officials, and even Ohio’s Republican governor, Mike DeWine, continue to circulate. Kilgore’s story became the central “evidence” for these unfounded claims, but the discovery of Miss Sassy in her own home has since put the rumors to rest—at least in her case.
Vance, however, has refused to retract the story, even after being informed that it was untrue. His comments, along with those from Donald Trump, have sparked outrage and led to heightened tensions in Springfield, including a bomb threat that targeted local schools and city hall. Despite the backlash, Vance continues to push the debunked narrative in an attempt to further his immigration agenda.
