The Strange Case of Pink Cross Foundation's Sal Mckvey - UPDATED

The adult entertainment industry has its fair share of oddballs at its fringes, but in terms of pure weirdness, few reach the zenith that the character known as Sal Mckvey aka Sal Amaya has.

Sal Mckvey

Sal's first blip on porno radar came more than a decade ago, in 2005, when the members of adult forum XXXPornTalk (XPT) discovered him...

It was soon discovered that Sal was posting PRs about himself...

Some appeared suspiciously like cribbed news items about actual adult biz personalities, such as photographer Suze Randall.

Suze's daughter, Holly, recognized Sal:

The fantasyland PRs continued...

With that one, it was proven that Sal was cribbing other people's accomplishments and honors and simply changing their name and company to his:

Despite having been outed, Sal kept up this practice for a while...

Here's Sal's 'bio' circa 2006:

I am Sal Mckvey Also Known as Bobby Jones.. I am an Adult Nude Model, Also a new XXX starlet. I have appeared in counntless Adult Videoclips, & in tons of Photoshoots. Like my friend Devyn Devine says, we want to prove to the world that you do't have to be a skinny, implanted woman or be a hot guy to make it in this business. I love sex, and meeting people, and I love to have tons of fun.. I love my fans. I am so thankful to you everyday. Without fans, Sal Mckvey is no one. Thanks for checking out myspace profile! I’m really excited to have a place to keep in touch with all the cool people and people i know for a long time... Sal Mckvey" Bobby Jones" here at my site, thanks for visiting me!!! You guys better come back now, or even just stay for a little while, i have a lot to offer, ill be a good idea if u stick around!! 

From 2007 on XPT:

A 2008 post by Mckvey 

But where were Sal's porn scenes? People on porn forums had been enquiring about them for years.

And therein lay the problem: to date, I remain unaware of any available Sal Mckvey porn scenes or clips. There exists no evidence that he was ever a performer at all.

Sal was clearly a legend in his own mind. He even had, at one time, a site called TheLegendarySalMckvey.wordpress.com. Sal posted there until at least December 2011; through the magic of WayBackMachine, we can still glimpse his vision of himself:

https://web.archive.org/web/20120302142413/http://thelegendarysalmckvey.wordpress.com/

One post read:

hello people this is porn star sal mckvey… Im back!!!!! THE LATIN KING OF EROTICA IS BACK…..IM BACK AND GOING NOWHERE

Correct.

Along came a spider

In the fall of 2012, Sal, having failed conclusively at making a name for himself in the adult world, followed in the footsteps of other personalities on porn's fringe -- he signed on with Shelley Lubben and Pink Cross Foundation.

Ironically, Mckvey's name had been mentioned in a Shelley Lubben thread on XPT in 2008

When Lubben first announced Sal’s endorsement of Pink Cross, Sal told a friend that he’d been out of porn for two years, and his only job was “helping out” at the office of a Los Angeles area church. At that time, however, Sal’s Twitter account still retained mentions of “private shows,” and his Twitter and Facebook both featured pics of him in lascivious poses, sucking on a dildo...

...and in one instance, sucking on a penis.

Online, Sal's photos still featured him in full make-up and dressed (unconvincingly) as a woman — and in fact some of the close-up pics on his Facebook profile were actually stolen shots of female porn star Mercedes Ashley! [NSFW link] 

After Lubben was ribbed about all this online, Sal’s social media accounts were quickly scrubbed.

Although an actual porn career had eluded him, Shelley Lubben had made Mckvey an ex porn star.

Sal and Shelley Lubben. Source: YouTube screenshot

Lubben posted a "testimony" in his name:

I have done photo shoots with some of the world’s most popular female porn stars and they, too, have to do drugs to get through a scene. Behind the scenes they are not happy. All of us adult stars hide behind our persona when we are on camera but when the camera is done filming, we go home and we are miserable.

I’m just really sick of the drama and drugs in porn. I will no longer spread my legs for the porn industry. I want out and I want to live a normal life. I want to find out who I really am without porn. I don’t want to be that porn character anymore. And I really feel if I don’t get out soon, that I will die. 

I know God has something better for me.

I know God has chosen me to be a better person. 

I hope my story helps you if you are considering doing porn. Porn has done nothing for me except destroy my life and I have nothing to show for my years in porn except a lot of pain.

Lubben added a plea for donations as a tag to Sal's "story":

Sal is now attending ministry school at Victory Outreach. He found a good job. He has never worked a normal job since he was sold into gay porn as a minor. So, please pray God would bless him in his new job. He really needs assistance with rent and living expenses while he heals from porn and attends ministry school and works a new job. He really needs a lap top for school. If you can help Sal, please donate at www.thepinkcross.org or mail your donation to:

Pink Cross Foundation . . . .

Thank you for caring about this precious man!

*Please pray for Sal as he continues to heal. Thank you for caring!

To the extent that Sal was ever in porn, he certainly left without having to be rescued by Lubben. What did Sal say he received from Lubben? Love, support and prayers – no mention of Lubben “rescuing” him out of porn or of having provided any financial assistance or valuable resources. She cheered him on in the "recovery" he undertook on his own.

Santa's little helper

But Mckvey was, in many respects, the perfect Pink Cross spokesperson: a straight-faced liar and delusional fraud who was accustomed to getting his picture taken with adult stars at convention appearances, and pretending they illustrated a close personal "connection".

It was but a short jump from this...

...and this...

...and this...

... and this...

to this:

Lubben saw his potential and, in July 2013, named him leader of a brand new Pink Cross Chapter in the San Fernando Valley.

Aside from a Facebook page, and a booth at a peace march in October 2014, not much was heard about PCF/SFV again.

The return of Sal Mckvey

A suspicious "fan page" for Sal popped up in Nov. 2014 which went out of its way to warn visitors:

THIS PAGE IS NOT RUN BY THE PORN STAR SAL MCKVEY.. THIS IS JUST A FAN PAGE. RUN BY A FAN OF SAL.. WISHING HE CAN COME BACK

Yep.

Sal gives himself away, of course:

Remember, Sal was at this time actively supporting Shelley Lubben's anti-porn group and decrying his [alleged] experiences in and around adult entertainment.

In 2015, The Lubbens relocated to Springville, CA, and her husband Garrett was arrested twice  within 30 days for domestic battery and resisting/obstructing a peace officer. His trial date has been set for February 29, but may be continued until a later date.

In January 2016, a bloated Shelley Lubben announced via iPhone video that she had shut down the Pink Cross Foundation:

The Pink Cross website landing page now directs visitors to her personal website -- through which she is still available for paid bookings.

But what happened to Sal?

Meet Mercedes...

Sal Mckvey, February 2016

Sal, noticeably more svelte, says he is undergoing surgical transition to become a woman, and has selected the name Mercedes.

Sal also says that, although he still speaks to Shelley, he is no longer affiliated with her. According to Sal, Shelley made about $80,000 off of him through Pink Cross, and all Pink Cross paid for was his tummy tuck and the removal of fat from his arms.

Who could think of a better use of Pink Cross Foundation donors' money than a tummy tuck and liposuction for Sal Mckvey?

UPDATE: November 2016

From Sal's Facebook page. Meet Mercedes?