You can’t believe everything you see on the internet.
That’s the case with a recently created Facebook page claiming the defunct Pevely Flea Market will reopen next year with a grand-reopening appearance by former President Donald Trump and performances by the 1980s rock band, Poison, and a dance group called the Australian Thunder From Down Under.
Police and city officials say the Facebook page and announcements are fake
Pevely Police Capt. Larry Miller said he learned about the Facebook page and the wild claims on June 29, and since then both the Police Department and City Hall have fielded questions about the Facebook page’s legitimacy.
“We would know (if the Flea Market were reopening) because someone would have to renew the business licenses, and no one has done that,” Miller said.
Steve Voyles of Fenton, who owns the property, said he thought the posts were funny, but reiterated there are no plans to reopen the flea market.
“We don’t have any plans to do anything with the property by way of drive-in or anything else,” he said. “The building is for lease.”
Andy Pritchett, 29, of Cape Girardeau said he created the fake Facebook page, adding that he has created similar pages about other closed businesses.
“A little bit of this is to promote media literacy and get the message out that not everything you see online is going to be true,” he said. “Another part is it is pretty funny for me to see some of the interactions or responses people give to outlandish information they see online.”
Posts on the Facebook page, which is called “The Big Pevely Flea Market,” began popping up June 29.
One post on the page says food truck vendors were being sought and instructed people interested in leasing space at the market to send messages directly to the page, which does not have any information about how to contact the market directly by either telephone or email.
Miller said when Facebook pages do not provide a contact name and number and no physical address for a business, it is likely a hoax.
He also said neither police nor city staff have received any calls claiming they have sent money to the fraudulent organizer.
“Someone tried to see how much a spot was, and they were told it was free and to use the ‘Code: Sandwich’ to sign up, Miller said.
Miller said he posted a message on the Pevely Police Facebook page to warn people that the “Big Pevely Flea Market” Facebook page and the information about the reopening is a hoax, adding that there was a similar hoax involving Pevely Days.
“A few weeks ago someone from another country had people convinced she was taking money for slots in our Pevely Days,” Miller said.
The Pevely Flea Market closed in 2011. Before it was a flea market, the property was used as a drive-in movie business.