Don’t buy Gas from Petro Express Because It Belongs to Controversial Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
A forwarded email that warns not to buy gas from Petro Express because it’s just another name for Citgo, the oil company owned by Hugo Chavez, the controversial anti-American president of Venezuela.
The Truth:
It is not true that Petro Express is owned by Hugo Chavez or Venezuela. Petro Express was an American-owned company that had been headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company was purchased in 2007 by Pantry Inc., the Kangaroo convenience store chain with headquarters in Sanford, North Carolina.
Prior to the Pantry Inc. acquisition Petro Express stores sold Citgo gasoline but according to an allbusiness.com report published October 18, 2006, the company decided to phase it out from its 45 locations in favor for their own name brand.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez drew the ire of Americans for his open opposition to the United States. His most dramatic display was during a fiery speech before the United Nations in September of 2006 in which he called president Bush “the devil” and suggested that the United Nations should move elsewhere, perhaps Jerusalem.
Because of Chavez’s hatred of the United States, many American motorists have called for a boycott of Citgo, a company now owned by Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of Venezuela. Chavez died on March 5, 2013 at the age 58 after a bout with cancer that lasted close to two years.
This eRumor first went viral thanks to the efforts of Don Wildmon and the American Family Association (AFA) who launched an email campaign urging consumers to boycott Petro Express. We attempted to contact AFA to inform them of the false allegations. Our emails and calls were unanswered and they never released a retraction nor offered any apology to the employees of Petro Express.
Every once in a while this old rumor rises from the ashes and circulates on the World Wide Web in a frenzy but, sadly, the damage is already done.
There is a Petro Express Company in Baltimore, MD but a company spokesperson told TruthOrFiction.Com that they were never affiliated with the Petro Express of North Carolina. This company is also American owned and has been in business since 1989.
Updated 03-05-13