A disgraced former New York Times journalist, Jayson Blair, has emerged as the top donor to a fundraiser for the estranged wife of Gilgo Beach suspect Rex Heuermann. Blair, who resigned from the Times amid a plagiarism scandal two decades ago, contributed $2,000 to the fundraiser started by the daughter of the Happy Face Killer.

In an interview with the New York Daily News, Blair expressed his sympathy for the Heuermann family, stating, "I just thought, of all the practical things that these people are going to have to rebuild, they'll probably have to leave their neighborhood, it will forever impact their dreams. And I just thought that I want to be a part of helping them get back on their feet." He added that he can “relate” to their struggle, given his own past.

Blair, now a life coach in Ashburn, Va., was at the center of a news frenzy in 2003 when he stepped down from his position as a national reporter and editor for the New York Times. It was revealed that he had fabricated and plagiarized details in several major stories. The Times described Blair's deception as "a low point in the 152-year history of the newspaper."

Before his downfall, Blair was a rising star in journalism who had impressed his superiors at the Times during an internship. Following his resignation, 30 of his former co-workers and the University of Maryland's newspaper, The Diamondback, condemned his actions.

Blair's fabricated stories at the Times included a claim that he had traveled to Palestine, West Virginia to report on the capture and rescue of soldier Jessica Lynch. However, it was later discovered that Blair had never actually been to West Virginia, and his story on Lynch was based on details from the Associated Press.

On his website, Blair identifies himself as a former New York Times reporter and promotes his services as a life coach. He attributes his past scandal to untreated mental health problems that "cost me much of my life at the time." Blair specializes in mental health coaching, career coaching, attention deficit disorder, pervasive developmental disorders, mood disorders, and substance abuse.

In a message accompanying his donation on GoFundMe, Blair alluded to his own experience with media scrutiny, saying, "I hope this also helps them escape some of the media glare that I know can be so damaging."

Blair's contribution is part of a larger fundraising effort for Heuermann's estranged wife, Ellerup, and her two adult children. The campaign has received a total of 731 donations, raising over $28,000 so far.