One week after an exposé pointed out his repeated lies, Montreal journalist Francois Bugingo has admitted to fabricating news articles throughout his career.
On Friday night Bugingo penned a Facebook post explaining his actions over the past 23 years as an attempt to "capture the interest of the Quebec public to subjects that appear to be very distant."
He admitted to multiple "errors in judgment" including making up stories out of whole cloth, including tales of an execution in Misrata and pretending to be involved in a hostage negotiation mission in Egypt.
He also said he plagiarized all details of an event that happened in Sarajevo.
Francois Bugingo in his own words
Bugingo wrote that he was shocked by the tone of the original article into his history, and the "lynch mob-attitude" of the comments he has faced in the past week.
However he said that anyone who thought the investigation into his falsehoods was based on racism or other ulterior motives was mistaken.
He also said that he, and he alone, was responsible for his work.
"Failures are mine. The responsibilities are fully mine. At no time did any of my collaborators take part in these actions, and the punishment that is imposed upon me should not reflect on them, nor my employers," wrote Bugingo.
He finished his post by saying he will take time to think about his career.
"Whatever hat I wear in the future, I am not saying farewell, but until next we meet."
Last Saturday La Presse reported that Bugingo had fabricated many stories during his two-decade career, during which he had reported for Radio-Canada, La Presse, Le Devoir, Tele-Quebec and Cogeco.
Most recently he worked for 98.5 FM and on a freelance basis for Quebecor media outlets including the Journal de Montreal, Journal de Quebec, and TVA Nouvelles -- all of which cut ties with Bugingo in the wake of the La Presse investigation.
