A leading purveyor of so-called fake news in the 2016 US presidential election has died at the age of 38.
Officials said Paul Horner was discovered dead in his bed on September 18 near Phoenix, Arizona.
Maricopa County Sheriff's Office spokesman Mark Casey said Mr Horner had a history of prescription drug abuse and that "evidence and the scene suggested this could be an accidental overdose".
Mr Horner was known for writing false news stories and disseminating internet hoaxes that often went viral on Facebook and hoodwinked thousands of people.
They included a story falsely claiming President Barack Obama was gay and a radical Muslim, and another saying protesters were being paid thousands of dollars to demonstrate at Donald Trump's campaign rallies.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Mr Horner said he thought Donald Trump won the election because of him.
"My sites were picked up by Trump supporters all the time. I think Trump is in the White House because of me.
Mr Horner even fooled Donald Trump's campaign manager Corey Lewandowski who shared his story claiming a man admitted to having been paid 3,500 to protest at rallies held by Trump. He later deleted the tweet.
"His followers don't fact-check anything - they'll post everything, believe everything."
