Tag: corruption

Epstein, Israel, and the CIA: How The Iran–Contra Planes Landed at Les Wexner’s Base 

When a Southern Air Transport plane was shot down over Nicaragua in October 1986, the world got a rare window into U.S. government covert activity. Southern Air Transport was founded as a small cargo airline in 1947, the same year the Office of Strategic Services evolved into the Central Intelligence Agency as the U.S. pivoted to its Cold War posture. The agency owned the airline outright from 1960 until 1973, at which point it was sold to the same man, Stanley Williams, who had run the company since the Kennedy administration. 

The downing of the plane and the testimony of its lone survivor, Eugene Hasenfus, pulled a string that eventually unraveled the scandal known as Iran–Contra. Using Southern Air Transport planes, the CIA was shipping weapons to Iran, using Israel as a middleman, and deploying the profits to arm the Contras against the leftist Nicaraguan government. 

None of it was legal, and Southern Air Transport was getting too hot. In 1995, the company relocated its headquarters from Miami, Florida, to Columbus, Ohio. The company rebranded by flying imported shipments of clothing from China. But for three years in Columbus, the airline was dogged by rumors it had been—or was still—involved in drug smuggling. 

According to the veteran Columbus journalist Bob Fitrakis, who provided his historical reporting on the topic to Drop Site and The American Conservative, investigators in both the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio’s Office of Inspector General were looking into Southern Air Transport amid ongoing public scrutiny of the Iran–Contra affair—and sources in both offices identified Jeffrey Epstein as having a pivotal role in relocating the planes. 

At the time, Epstein was a relatively obscure financier managing the money and real estate investments of the Ohio-based fashion and retail mogul Leslie Wexner. Under his stewardship of the Wexner empire, the planes that previously carried arms to Iran and Nicaragua were repurposed to deliver clothes to feed Wexner’s network of retail chains, including Victoria’s Secret and Abercrombie & Fitch. 

Southern Air Transport abruptly declared bankruptcy on October 1, 1998—exactly one week before the CIA Inspector General released its official findings on the Iran–Contra affair, linking the airline to allegations of Contra cocaine trafficking from Nicaragua. Per Fitrakis, under pressure from the governor’s office, Ohio officials dropped their inquiries, meaning that Epstein’s role never became public.

How did Epstein end up moving the former Contra planes to Columbus? Answering that question—or at least getting close—requires a closer look at the men behind the scandal that defined the second half of the Reagan administration and gave the public the clearest look inside the U.S. government’s clandestine global operations in a generation or more. Like a spy-service Forrest Gump, Jeffrey Epstein can be found there every leg of the way.

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Blanche says DOJ won’t release full Epstein files by Friday deadline

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice (DOJ) would not be releasing the full Epstein files on Friday as required under new legislation, instead sending over a partial batch.

Blanche told Fox News the Justice Department would release “several hundred thousand” documents on Friday, “and then over the next couple weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more.”

Blanche attributed the delay to the need to redact any names or identifying information about witnesses, but failing to turn over the full unclassified files could run afoul of the law, which gave the department 30 days to publicly share the documents.

“So today is the 30 days when I expect that we’re going to release several hundred thousand documents today. And those documents will come in in all different forms, photographs and other materials associated with, with all of the investigations into, into Mr. Epstein,” Blanche said.

“What we’re doing is we are looking at every single piece of paper that we are going to produce, making sure that every victim, their name, their identity, their story, to the extent it needs to be protected, is completely protected. And so I expect that we’re going to release more documents over the next couple of weeks.”

DOJ was compelled to turn over the files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein by a bill that got near-unanimous support in Congress, signed into law after President Trump reversed his earlier stance opposing their release.

While the bill does allow for redactions related to victims and for DOJ to withhold some information about the investigation, it does not provide a rolling deadline to turn over the documents.

Under the law, the DOJ has 15 days to turn over its rationale for any documents withheld.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said not releasing the required files in full amounts to breaking the law.

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Senate Armed Services chair sees ‘no evidence of war crimes’ after inquiry into boat strikes

Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said on Thursday that he has seen “no evidence of war crimes” committed during the U.S. military’s Sept. 2 strikes against an alleged drug-trafficking boat in the Caribbean, and he indicated that his panel does not plan to further probe the controversial operation. 

“I have seen no evidence of war crimes. The fact is that our military is asked to make incredibly difficult decisions. Service members must do so based on the best available information and often under very tight timelines,” Wicker said in a lengthy statement. 

Wicker said he is “satisfied” with all of the information the committee has received regarding the Sept. 2 attack, where two survivors were killed in a strike authorized by Navy Adm. Frank Bradley. Wicker said the strikes against “narco-terrorists” in the U.S. Southern Command area are based on “sound legal advice.” 

“When reports first surfaced about a secondary strike, my office immediately directed inquiries to the department to ascertain the veracity of these reports. I promised that SASC would take this matter seriously and conduct thorough oversight. We have done so,” the Mississippi senator said. “Both military and civilian Pentagon leaders have worked in good faith to provide answers to us without any delays.” 

Wicker’s panel said it would investigate the Sept. 2 operation, during which the U.S. military conducted four strikes against the purported drug-trafficking vessel in the Caribbean, shortly after The Washington Post revealed a second strike, ordered by Bradley, took place during the mission.

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‘Crucial witness’ in investigation into Sarajevo ‘human safaris’ where tourists paid to kill civilians dies suddenly despite being in good health weeks ago

A key witness at the centre of an investigation into whether wealthy tourists paid thousands to kill unarmed civilians in Sarajevo during the city’s siege in the 1990s has died unexpectedly. 

Slavko Aleksic, a Bosnian former militia leader, died in the city of Trebinje, despite having been in good health, The Times reports. 

His sudden death comes after an investigation was launched last month in Italy following allegations of ‘human safari’ sniper trips during the Balkan wars – a bloody conflict that left more than 11,000 civilians dead. 

Aleksic, 69, commandeered a Jewish cemetery above Sarajevo used by snipers, and according to Serbian lawyer Cedomir Stojkovic, ‘he would have been a crucial witness’ because ‘he could have said who did the shooting and who organised it’.

Croatian investigative journalist Domagoj Margetic added: ‘In November, Aleksic was apparently in good health — and now he has suddenly, and very conveniently, died.’

Last month, Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic was accused of being involved in Sarajevo’s ‘human safari’ sniper trips, an allegation he denies.

On November 24, Aleksic gave an interview on Serbian television and insisted the president had had no involvement in sniper activity. 

 ‘Aleksic was alive and well then, did not announce a fatal illness and, on the contrary, said he would testify in favour of Vucic,’ Margetic said. 

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Gilbert, Arizona Police Accused of Falsifying Crime Statistics Through Underreporting Revealing Possible Nationwide Trend After 2024 FBI Crime Stats Find Massive Plunge in Violent Crime and DC Police Caught Rigging Data

The town of Gilbert, Arizona, has come under fire and calls for an investigation after a former town councilman alleged during a town council meeting last month that police leadership had “fudged numbers” and underreported crime for more than a decade.

Gilbert is the largest town in the United States and the fourth municipality in Arizona, with nearly 300,000 residents.

In December 2023, the town boasted its ranking as “the second-safest city in America among the 100 largest in the nation,” according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Uniform Crime Reporting data. However, according to former councilman Bill Spence, based on conversations with current Council Member and former Gilbert Police Department leader Kenny Buckland, Gilbert Police Chiefs have been “manipulating the numbers” to lower reported response times and make the city appear safer.

Spence said during the “communication from citizens” portion of the November 18 town council meeting that Buckland had made “several concerning statements about Gilbert Police Department policies implemented by former police chief Tim Dorn.” Dorn “fudged numbers” and “changed how we do our calls for service” by creating a “Priority Zero” crime category, which cut reported police response times by about 40%, Spence told the Council.

The changes to crime reporting, allegedly made under Tim Dorn, had been “codified by” Chief Mike Soelberg when he succeeded Dorn in June 2017. “And the practice continued until 2023, when the reporting systems no longer allowed for this type of data manipulation,” Spence stated.

Chief Mike Soelberg and Patrick Banger, Gilbert’s outgoing Town Manager, first appointed in August 2011, Spence said, “were made aware of the trouble caused by these policies, yet they continued to report manipulated information.” He continued, “They betrayed our police officers, misled numerous councils, and jeopardized the safety of our residents.”

In closing his speech, Spence demanded “immediate investigation of the town from an outside law enforcement agency.”

“Failure to do so would make this entire council complicit in the conspiracy to cover up misconduct in what may be the biggest scandal in the history of our town.“

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Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan Found GUILTY of Obstruction For Helping Illegal Alien Evade ICE Agents – Faces 5 Years in Prison

Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan on Thursday evening was found guilty of obstruction for helping an illegal alien evade ICE agents.

Dugan was acquitted of count 1 – the misdemeanor but she was found guilty on count 2 – the felony obstruction.

She is facing five years in prison.

AP reported:

A jury found a Wisconsin judge accused of helping a Mexican immigrant dodge federal authorities guilty of obstruction Thursday, marking a victory for President Donald Trump as he continues his sweeping immigration crackdown across the country.

Federal prosecutors charged Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan with obstruction, a felony, and concealing an individual to prevent arrest, a misdemeanor, in April. The jury acquitted her on the concealment count, but she still faces up to five years in prison on the obstruction count.

The jury returned the verdicts after deliberating for six hours.

Dugan and her attorneys left the courtroom, ducked into a side conference room and closed the door without speaking to reporters.

In April, a federal grand jury indicted Hannah Dugan for helping an illegal alien evade ICE agents.

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FBI Raids Somali-Owned ‘Health Services’ Business in Minnesota as Medicaid Fraud Exceeds $9 Billion

The FBI on Thursday raided a Somali-owned ‘health services’ business in Bloomington, Minnesota, after the Health and Human Services Department flagged it for fraud.

FBI agents were spotted carrying boxes out of Somali-owned Ultimate Home Health Services.

Fox 9 reported:

FBI agents raided the offices of a Bloomington business on Thursday, days after the State of Minnesota suspended a business license at that address citing fraud.

A FOX 9 crew witnessed FBI agents and other federal investigators carrying boxes from a business in a plaza off 17th Avenue South near Old Shakopee Road East. The business is located in a suite next to a pizza shop, an Asian market, and a laundry mat.

Inside the building, there was damage to a door belonging to Ultimate Home Health Services which appeared to have been forced open.

A letter dated Dec. 5 shows the Department of Human Services had suspended the license for Ultimate Home Health Services, a home and community-based service, citing the risk of fraud.

“This immediate suspension is based on a determination that persons served by your program are at an imminent risk of harm and because the holder and controlling individual are the subjects of a pending administrative action related to fraud against the program which is administered by a state agency,” the letter states.

The letter goes on to say that the state determined clients for the business were not required services, a client who died hadn’t been reported, and staff had provided false information to DHS licensors. The letter also states that the license holder is already facing administrative action for fraud against the program.

Assistant US Attorney Joe Thompson on Thursday said the Somali fraud may have ballooned to $18 billion.

“The fraud is not small. It isn’t isolated. The magnitude cannot be overstated,” Thompson said.

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Trump Says Mega-Donor Offered Him $250 Million to Run for Third Term

President Donald Trump lit up the White House Tuesday night after Israeli-American billionaire mega-donor Miriam Adelson floated the idea and even dangled another $250 million if he ran for a third term.

The stunning exchange took place during the annual Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremony at the White House, where Trump proudly praised Adelson as his campaign’s top donor from the 2024 election cycle.

According to Trump, Adelson had already contributed an eye-popping $250 million to help propel him back into office.

“Miriam gave my campaign indirectly, $250 million. She was number one. When somebody can give you $250 million, I think we should give her the opportunity to say hello,” Trump said.

Trump then invited Adelson to the podium, introducing her as an “incredible woman” and praising her late husband, Sheldon Adelson, as a fierce and unapologetic champion of Israel.

During her remarks, Adelson recounted her long-standing admiration for Trump, including attending one of his speeches at the Israeli Knesset despite being in physical pain at the time.

The moment quickly took a political turn when she revealed a conversation she had recently had with Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz.

“And now I met Alan Dershowitz,” Adelson said. “And he said, the legal thing about four more years. And I said, Alan, I agree with you. So we can do it. Think about it.”

That line immediately ignited the room. The audience erupted into chants of “Four more years! Four more years!”

Trump returned to the microphone with a wide grin and dropped the bombshell.

“She said, ‘Think about it. I’ll give you another $250.”

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Lawsuit Filed After Minnesota Officials Allegedly Weaponized Zoning Laws Against Free Camping Program for Disabled Veterans

A bombshell federal civil rights lawsuit filed in Minnesota accuses St. Louis County officials of waging a years-long, politically motivated campaign to shut down a nonprofit that provides free primitive camping and outdoor therapy to disabled veterans.

The 121-page complaint, filed in U.S. District Court, alleges systemic corruption, disability discrimination, abuse of power, and constitutional violations by county commissioners, planning officials, attorneys, and township leaders who, according to the lawsuit, colluded to block a veteran-focused nonprofit because they simply did not want those veterans on the land.

At the center of the case is Rough-N-It Inc., a nonprofit founded to provide free, non-commercial camping for disabled veterans, many of whom cannot afford resort fees and rely on outdoor therapy as part of their recovery.

According to the lawsuit, county staff repeatedly claimed the project offered “no public benefit,” even after being explicitly informed multiple times that the sole purpose of the land use was to serve disabled veterans.

The complaint alleges officials never conducted the legally required Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) analysis, instead relying on stereotypes and hostility toward veterans with disabilities.

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FBI memos detail a half dozen pay-to-play allegations involving Hillary Clinton and her foundation

Internal investigative files show FBI agents and federal prosecutors attempted to investigate a wide range of activities involving the State Department under then-Secretary of State Clinton a decade ago, including whether foreign donations made to the Clinton Foundation were used as improper influence on U.S. foreign policy.

The FBI and DOJ inquiries were repeatedly shut down by FBI and DOJ leadership. 

Just the News reported earlier this week about Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley’s release of a timeline written by federal investigators laying out the repeated political obstruction those agents faced from their own bureau bosses and the Justice Department during the 2016 election and beyond as they probed whether Hillary Clinton engaged in a pay-to-play corruption scheme involving her family foundation.

The documents turned over by FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi show that career agents and line prosecutors at the FBI and DOJ believed the Clinton Foundation saga may have been a criminal one, but orders from leaders such as then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and then-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe slow-walked and stonewalled the inquiry to the point where it was hobbled.

An internal investigative timeline stated that the FBI’s New York Field Office “initiated a Preliminary Investigation” on January 22, the Little Rock Field Office “initiated a Full Field Investigation” on January 27, and the Washington Field Office “initiated a Preliminary Investigation” on January 29, 2016.

Another internal timeline of the investigation said that the FBI’s Little Rock Field Office “submits case opening requesting full field investigation regarding Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership, Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative, Uranium One, Uranium One Americas, Frank Giustra, Ian Telfer.”

No cases were brought against Clinton. Below are some of the episodes in which investigations were stymied.

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