An American flag reportedly flown at the Pentagon during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks is up for sale again after the high bidder withdrew his offer.
Todd Schimmel, 26, of Mound, Minn., took back his $371,300 bid Tuesday after doubt was raised about whether the flag had really been flying during the attack.
Schimmel did not return phone calls from The Associated Press on Tuesday. A request for comment e-mailed to the eBay account of the high bidder brought a brief response: “Flag is a fake Im not accepting.”
David Nicholson, 44, of Orange, Va., auctioned the flag on eBay to raise money for his kidney cancer treatment.
The flag reportedly flew over a construction crane at the Pentagon. But during the original auction, Md.-based Facchina Construction Co., which gave Nicholson the flag, said it did not have a crane at the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.
An update on the controversy is included in the description for the new, three-day auction, which was started on eBay Tuesday evening. The description also includes the text of a letter of authenticity Nicholson said is signed by a Facchina site supervisor.
“Everything happens for a reason, and it will all work out for the best,” Nicholson said.
