Early on Monday morning as the T in the Park music festival was winding down a man calling himself Scott Johnston, 23, tweeted: “Hi im somewhere in green 7 someone has packed me into a tent bag for a joke and I can’t get out I don’t have much battery left.”
@Tinthepark hi im somewhere in green 7 someone has packed me into a tent bag for a joke and I can't get out I don't have much battery left
— Scott Johnston (@ScottJohnston8) July 13, 2015
His post triggered a flurry of attention online and has now been retweeted over 8,000 times. His SOS tweet dominated the #TITP2015 trending hashtag in Edinburgh, while news of T in the Park is currently led by the story of tent bag man on Google. Then the authorities got involved.
Police Scotland took the message seriously and replied with: “Hi Scott please tweet us with more info if you can. We have officers with stewards in the area looking for you now.”
The police account sent further tweets urging the trapped man or his friends and family to contact the authorities using the non-emergency number.
@ScottJohnston8 please can you, a friend or family member contact us on 101.
— Police Scotland (@policescotland) July 13, 2015
Traffic Scotland then got involved in tweeting the apparently zipped up man: “Hi Scott, we have contacted the police, if you have any battery left please provide an update. Thanks.”
Multiple journalists also got in touch to attempt to interview him. They included Jamie Ross, Buzzfeed’s political reporter, who tweeted his exchanged with the prankster.
OH MY GOD I THINK IT'S REALLY HIM. #mantrappedinabagattinthepark pic.twitter.com/weJzvDEaGE
— Jamie Ross (@JamieRoss7) July 13, 2015
Then Johnston tweeted:
It's okay everyone my friends unzipped me earlier never been so happy to see the rain
— Scott Johnston (@ScottJohnston8) July 13, 2015
But was he really ever trapped in a bag?
The Daily Record later reported that Johnston, from Ayr, admitting the whole thing was a hoax. He said he had sent the tweet “for a laugh” and wasn’t even at the festival at the time the tweet was sent having left the site on Sunday morning.
“I don’t feel bad about it. I can’t stop laughing,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.
He said: “It is everywhere online ... I just tweeted it for a laugh. I didn’t think it would spiral out of control.
“I barely use Twitter. That’s probably the first tweet I’ve sent in ages.”
He continued: “it’s the only thing that made me laugh all weekend.
“That was my seventh year going and it was the worst T in the Park I’ve ever been to.”
“I actually left earlier on Sunday morning, I wasn’t even there this morning.”
Do the police think it’s funny?
Police Scotland said: “We are making enquiries.”
When asked whether any action would be taken, a police spokeswoman said: “We need to establish the circumstance.”
The Daily Record said Police Scotland confirmed Johnston had contacted them to say he was okay.
