**UPDATE 4/30/2015 – 1:50am** :
The story of Freddie Gray took an interesting turn last night. First, [__Washington Post published an article claiming that Baltimore Police leaked a document__](http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/prisoner-in-van-said-freddie-gray-was-banging-against-the-walls-during-ride/2015/04/29/56d7da10-eec6-11e4-8666-a1d756d0218e_story.html) purporting to contain an anonymous statement claiming that Freddie Gray broke his own neck in custody, from a prisoner, in custody of Baltimore police.
It appears that Avi Tasher is the leak.
Then, Heavy.com, in following the Post’s story, published [__Freddie Gray Tried to ‘Injure Himself’: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know__](http://heavy.com/news/2015/04/freddie-gray-tried-to-injure-himself-washington-post-report-document-other-prisoner-leak-banged-head-walls-avi-tasher-investigation-batts-previous-injury/ “Freddie Gray Tried to ‘Injure Himself’: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know”), following it with [__Avi Tasher: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know__](http://heavy.com/news/2015/04/avi-avraham-tasher-baltimore-maryland-police-officer-cop-facebook-twitter-posts-cnn-photos-video-pictures-photo-freddie-gray-investigation-protests-injured-himself-banged-head-van-other-prisoner-witne/), crediting in PINAC in both.
And shortly after midnight, Washington Post reporter Peter Hermann, who wrote the story on the leaked document, called us on the [__PINAC Hotline__](http://photographyisnotacrime.com/contact/call-pinac/) and thanked us for breaking the story, which was well appreciated.
Listen to his message below.
https://soundcloud.com/photographyisnotacrime/washington-post-thanks-pinac-for-the-scoop-on-avi-tasher-claim-that-freddie-gray-broke-his-own-neck
__**Original Story:**__
A Facebook commenter purported to be a Baltimore police officer named Avi Tasher claimed that [__Freddie Gray__](http://photographyisnotacrime.com/2015/04/freddie-gray-death-exposes-constitutional-disparity-of-so-called-high-crime-areas/) broke his own neck by repeatedly banging his head against the inside of the van, rendering himself unconscious before he died a week later.
But Tasher apparently deleted his comment and looks to have shut down [__his Facebook page__](https://www.facebook.com/avi.tasher?fref=nf).
However, screen shots were made of his comments before he shut it down and now people on Twitter are outraged.
Prior to shutting it down, his Facebook page still contained some information about an engagement before it completely disappeared as you can see in one of the screen shots below. And he is set to get married to a Julie Katz on October 24, according to a [__wedding registry site.__](http://photographyisnotacrime.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/10804662)
There is the possibility that the commenter who calls himself Avi Tasher created a fake account to troll on Facebook, but the same person apparently made a comment back in August 2014, claiming to be a police officer. And a Google search indicates that a man by this same name has been claiming to be a cop and a weapons expert for more than a year.
If it’s true that he is a Baltimore cop, then it’s eye-raising that he would make such a statement on a public forum when the Baltimore Police Department has been extremely tight-lipped about its”investigation” into the death.
And if there was truth to what he was saying, that would have been the story from day one.
However, it is not unusual for cops to create their own narratives for certain news outlets in the hope the story will gain legs and eventually become truth in the eyes of the blind. But it’s unusual for cops to create these narratives using their own name.
We are still working this story, so come back later for more information and details.
This is what he [__tweeted back in August.__](http://photographyisnotacrime.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/search?q=cache%3ADUhCnrAReNgJ%3Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FCBSBaltimore%2Fposts%2F10152409770848477%20&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us)
**UPDATE:** A search through the [__Maryland Judiciary website__](http://photographyisnotacrime.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/casesearch.courts.state.md.us), which lists complaining officers and witnesses, revealed there is a Baltimore cop named Avraham Tasher, who has been a cop since at least 2010. He is also listed as chief of the Organized Crime Division. He also [__made more than $78,000__](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdata.baltimorecity.gov%2Fviews%2Fgp68-svub%2Frows.xls%3FaccessType%3DDOWNLOAD&ei=72I9VZCCPI_bsASU54CYBA&usg=AFQjCNGnrAKSLRZgZrINjSoV3vCpW6GUZw&sig2=VMtTZ1dPzJm4lGXXBBYXtg) in 2014.
