The Twitter-tale that sounded too wild to be true just got as much verification as it probably ever will. Rolling Stonegot Zola, along with Jess and Jarrett, to tell their own somewhat varying accounts of what really went down in Tampa. And surprisingly, not only did the gist of it really happen, but Z's (real name: Rudy) reign of terror after he and Zola parted ways is even more horrific.
David Kushner tracks the story chronologically as originally told by Zola, while checking in with the three main principals for their own accounts of what happened, what was embellished and who's lying. It's a compelling read that brings a sobering quality to the insanity of Zola's original yarn (even if it is curiously devoid of a Complex citation and/or hyperlink despite mentioning our parody, but I'm sleep). Apparently this was her third time tweet-telling it; the first two times were straightforward: "I made people who probably wouldn't want to hear a sex trafficking story want to be a part of it, because it was entertaining."
To summarize, of course Jarrett didn't actually jump off a balcony, and there was no murder. But all three can agree that Z/Rudy is a bad guy and sex-trafficking is a country-wide issue that's not getting the full attention it deserves. "I was literally brainwashed by Rudy," Jess admitted. "If even one girl looks at this and says, 'This can happen to me, I need to change,' then it will be worth it all in the end."
Read the full thing over at Rolling Stone.
