Was the Story of Santa with a Dying Child Fake?

A few days ago the story of Eric Schmitt-Matzen, who plays Santa Claus in Knoxville, Tenn. went viral. He shared a devastating story of how a terminally ill child died in his arms while he visited with him in the hospital. But, was it all a big lie? 

The Knoxville News Sentinel investigated the story and found that some facts checked out, but his story about bringing a gift to the child hasn't been verified.

The paper says, "The News Sentinel cannot establish that Schmitt-Matzen’s account is inaccurate, but more importantly, ongoing reporting cannot establish that it is accurate Therefore, because the story does not meet the newspaper’s standards of verification, we are no longer standing by the veracity of Schmitt-Matzen’s account."

Read their full statement, here.

I find it hard to believe that someone would make up such a heart-wrenching story. What do you think? Below you can watch Schmitt-Matzen talk about what happened - Do you think he's fabricating the events?