The Manti Te’o hoax scandal took another turn on Thursday, as Te’o released several voicemails that he believed came from someone named “Lennay Kekua.” Te’o provided the three recorded voicemails to Katie Couric, who in turn posted them on her site (if that link isn’t working, try again in a few ... it comes and goes).
Lennay Kekua voice mails: Someone definitely called Manti Te’o
Te’o released three voicemails to Katie Couric, supposedly containing the voice of who he thought was Lennay Kekua.
J. Meric
The first voicemail was from the day Kekua supposedly began undergoing chemotherapy for her leukemia:
"Hi, I just wanted to let you know I got here, and I’m getting ready for my first session. Just wanted to call you and keep you posted. I miss you and I love you. Bye."
The second voicemail is from a time Kekua supposedly thought Te’o had someone in his room with him:
"I don’t know if you’re alone, and I don’t care. [Indecipherable] You made it clear what you want. Take care."
The middle portion of the second voicemail is difficult to understand. Personally, I thought I heard a reference to a french fry, but I’m going to assume that I didn’t hear that correctly. I mean, who gets upset about french fries? They’re delicious.
The third voicemail is supposedly from the day she was released from the hospital, which was believed to be Sep. 11, 2012:
"Hey babe, I’m just calling to say goodnight. I love you, I know that you’re probably doing homework or you’re with the boys, or [indecipherable] on a Friday. I just wanted to say I love you, and goodnight, and I’ll be okay tonight. I’ll do my best. So, yeah, [indecipherable] and I’ll talk to you tomorrow. I love you so much. Sweet dreams."
When the story broke that Ronaiah Tuiasosopo was the one who spoke to Te’o on the phone as Kekua, many were incredulous that someone could keep up the con for that long without being found out. After listening to the voicemails, I suppose it kind of does sound like a girl*.
*I cannot believe that I just wrote that sentence. This is all so inconceivably stupid.
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