Late 'Jackass' star Ryan Dunn mistaken for soldier killed in Gaza

A photo of late TV personality Ryan Dunn -- shown here at the 'Jackass 3' DVD release party in 2011 -- was run on the cover of a New Zealand newspaper that thought he was a soldier recently killed in Gaza.

July 28, 2014 7:11 PM PT

A New Zealand newspaper is making apologies after it accidentally ran a front page picture of the late “Jackass” star Ryan Dunn, thinking he was a New Zealand-born Israeli soldier.

The editor of the New Zealand Herald took full responsibility Monday for the error.

Both on the cover of its print edition and on its website, the outlet ran a photo of Dunn thinking he was Staff Sgt. Guy Boyland, a soldier killed Friday during combat in Gaza. Boyland was featured in the paper’s cover story.

The Herald lifted the picture of Dunn off Boyland’s Facebook page without further investigating, according to the editor.

Boyland was a fan of Dunn’s, and the two do look similar.

Dunn, 34, was killed in 2011 in Pennsylvania when his car hit a tree at high speed. He and a passenger died from blunt force and fire, according to a coroner’s report, with toxicology tests showing his blood-alcohol content had been more than twice the legal limit.

The Herald did not immediately reply to a request for additional comment.

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