Tag: fbi

How Israel and the FBI manipulated assassination plots to goad Trump into Iran war

The FBI manufactured plots to convince Trump that Iran sought to kill him, while Israel and its administration allies exploited the president’s deepest fears to keep him on the war path.

“I got him before he got me,” an ebullient President Donald Trump remarked to a reporter when asked about his motives for authorizing the killing of Iran’s Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on February 28, 2026.

With his off-the-cuff remark, Trump revealed that anxiety about his own assassination at the hands of Iranian agents influenced his decision to initiate a US-Israeli regime change war that has already resulted in American casualties, the bombings of schools and hospitals inside Iran, devastating Iranian retaliatory strikes on US military bases and embassies, and a spiraling global economic crisis.

Trump’s generalized fears of assassination were well-founded. He was nearly killed in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024 by a 20-year-old engineering student named Thomas Crooks who managed to fire eight rounds at the former president from a rooftop, slicing his ear and missing his head by a hair’s breadth. Two months later, a drifter named Ryan Routh was arrested after hiding for hours in the shrubbery outside the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate in West Palm Beach, Florida. Routh had been spotted after pointing an assault rifle toward a Secret Service agent as Trump played golf 400 yards away. 

Officials have yet to produce any evidence that Iran played a role in either of these attempts on Trump’s life. Yet since those fateful events, Israel-aligned Trump advisors, Israeli intelligence, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself have gone to extreme lengths in order to tie Tehran to the plots. More shocking still is the fact that the FBI has manufactured a series of assassination plots, successfully convincing Trump that Iran was hunting him on US soil with highly sophisticated teams of hit men.

The man accused of leading the most significant of these operations, Asif Merchant, is currently on trial in a Brooklyn, NY federal court. After the US granted him a visa despite his presence on a terror watchlist, Merchant was in the constant company of an FBI confidential informant who ultimately steered the contrived plot to its conclusion. He never stood a chance of realizing his plans, and did not appear serious about doing so.

Independent journalist Ken Silva puts it succinctly in his forthcoming investigative book, “The Trump Assassination Plots”: “A closer look at the Merchant case reveals that at the very least…it was a highly controlled FBI sting operation that never posed a threat to Trump. More nefariously, records and whistleblower disclosures indicate that Merchant may have been the patsy in a case totally fabricated by the undercover agents.”

Authorities arrested Merchant on July 12, 2024 – just one day before Crooks attempted to kill Trump in Butler. Hours after the failed Butler assassination, FBI agents interrogated Merchant about whether it was in fact Iran that had Crooks under its control. 

At that point, Trump was still campaigning to be a “President of Peace. On the campaign stump, he warned that his opponent, Kamala Harris, “would get us into World War III guaranteed.” Trump vowed to resolve the war between Ukraine and Russia in one day, and distanced himself from pro-war Republicans who sought regime change in Iran. 

Pro-war elements in Trump’s coterie exercised multiple points of leverage to reverse the president’s anti-interventionist instincts. Ultra-Zionist billionaires supplied vital and well-documented influence over Trump’s policies by keeping his campaign war chest flush. But Trump remained an erratic personality whose petty grievances kept his aides in a perpetual state of uncertainty.

It was only by exploiting Trump’s deepest psychological vulnerability – his fear of an assassin’s bullet – that Israel and its cutouts in his administration were able to secure their influence over the president, keeping him on the warpath against Iran. 

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DOJ files reveal FBI’s plan to probe if close friends David Copperfield and Jeffrey Epstein shared a ‘predilection for minors’ and swapped possible victims 

The FBI sought to investigate if close friends Jeffrey Epstein and David Copperfield referred underage women to each other, a document released as part of the Epstein files reveal.

But agents claimed ‘weak’ bureau brass were intimidated by Copperfield and his ‘financial resources’ were too much for them to handle and the probe was eventually called off for those and other reasons.

A Daily Mail deep dive into the DOJ’s files reveals how serious the investigation into Copperfield was – and how close he was to the pedophile. Their ties were so close, the FBI referred to the illusionist as his favorite ‘cohort.’

Now, Copperfield announced today he is quitting his long running residency at the MGM Grand. He did not give a reason although it comes as his name appears at least 438 times in the released  DOJ documents from the Epstein files.

His final performance at the MGM Grand will be on April 30. He remains slated to perform 120 shows over the next eight weeks, in some cases as many as three shows a night. 

The DOJ emails show that prosecutors identified ‘lots of acts’ and and needed to further investigate whether Copperfield and Epstein were ‘engaged in referring possible victims to each other’.

The documents indicate that Copperfield had a ‘very close relationship’ with Epstein and trained his staff to pull young women from the audience at his shows to bring them backstage, where he kept a notebook of those he had sex with.

But after concern from ‘higher ups’, as one law enforcement official put it, the investigation did not lead to charges.

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FBI is probing ‘suspicious’ breach into bureau networks

The FBI is investigating a possible cyber breach into bureau networks, the agency confirmed to Nextgov/FCW.

“The FBI identified and addressed suspicious activities on FBI networks, and we have leveraged all technical capabilities to respond,” the bureau said Thursday. The statement did not elaborate further.

CNN first reported the incident and said the breach concerned a network used to facilitate and manage court-ordered wiretapping requests, citing a person familiar with an investigation into the matter. Nextgov/FCW could not independently confirm the matter was linked to wiretap systems.

Wiretaps are a common law enforcement technique used to lawfully intercept communications data on domestic targets. To obtain data, FBI analysts are typically required to obtain a warrant from a judge, allowing them to compel communications providers to hand over call, text or email data tied to a target. Specialized court orders can also allow for real-time surveillance of phone calls.

The FBI is also a heavy user of a communications intercept law housed in Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which lets certain agencies target overseas foreigners’ communications without a warrant. 

Telecom providers’ “lawful intercept” wiretapping systems were ensnared in a sweeping Chinese hack uncovered in 2024. The hackers, tied to a group called Salt Typhoon, leveraged the intrusions to target communications of high profile political officials including President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.

Foreign adversaries may, at any point in time, be targeting U.S. government systems. Wiretap contents are especially high-value intelligence targets because they could reveal sensitive information about what officials are thinking or planning.

It’s not clear if Salt Typhoon or another collective tied to foreign hackers was involved in the incident. Salt Typhoon is likely holding onto pilfered data “in perpetuity” for future theft and cyber exploitation, a top FBI official said last month.

The FBI has lost many of its staff in the last year amid a mix of firings and other mechanisms used by the second Trump administration to curtail the size of the federal workforce. That turnover has threatened the bureau’s national security resources, experts argue.

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Federal contractor busted on ritzy Caribbean island for ‘stealing $46 million in crypto’ from US government

A government contractor accused of stealing $46 million in cryptocurrency from the US Marshals Service has been captured on the Caribbean island of Saint Martin.

John Daghita, 21, was arrested following a joint operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and French authorities, FBI director Kash Patel announced Thursday.

A now-deleted LinkedIn account reportedly identified Daghita as working for Virginia-based contractor Command Services & Support, a firm owned by his father, Dean Daghita. 

Their work with the Marshals Service involved managing seized digital assets, which allegedly allowed Daghita to access private cryptocurrency accounts holding millions. 

Authorities have not elaborated on how the younger Daghita allegedly stole the huge fortune, with his alleged fraud dating back to late 2024. 

Patel announced the arrest on X sharing an image of a handcuffed Daghita wearing red sweatpants and flip flops as he was taken into custody next to a swimming pool. 

Patel also shared an image of a silver briefcase filled with hundred dollar bills and a number of hard drives.

‘The FBI will continue working 24/7 with our international partners to track down, apprehend, and bring to justice those who attempt to defraud American taxpayers – no matter where they try to hide,’ Patel wrote. 

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FBI Joins Search for Missing Retired Air Force General Who Led U.S. Military Research Lab That Develops Directed-Energy Technology

The FBI has now joined the search for retired Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland, who was reported missing in New Mexico.

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, retired Maj. Gen. McCasland, who previously commanded the Phillips Research Site at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, has been reported missing since Friday.

McCasland served three years as the commander of the Phillips Research Site at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, which is notable for its directed-energy weapons and advanced space technologies.

The investigation into McCasland’s disappearance is being led by the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, and on Tuesday afternoon, the office announced it has partnered with the FBI Albuquerque Field Office.

In a post on X, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office stated, “Due to his background and established partnerships, BCSO is coordinating closely with multiple agencies, including the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, which is assisting as standard practice when it has a tool, tactic, or technique that may benefit the investigation. BCSO remains the lead agency.”

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Deadly Texas bar shooting ‘potentially act of terrorism’, FBI says

Two people were killed and over a dozen injured in a shooting outside a beer garden in Austin, Texas, in an incident the FBI says may be related to terrorism.

Austin police identified the suspect as 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne. He was a naturalised American citizen born in Senegal, according to the BBC’s US partner CBS News and other US media.

After responding to calls of an active shooter at around 02:00 local time (08:00 GMT) on Sunday near Buford’s bar in the southern US state’s capital, police said they shot and killed the suspect, bringing the death toll to three.

Police have not offered a motive for the shooter. Of the survivors, 14 were taken to hospital, three in a critical condition.

Two sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News that the gunman was wearing a sweatshirt with the words “Property of Allah”.

CBS was also told by an official with knowledge of the investigation that officers who searched the gunman’s home found an Iranian flag and pictures of Iranian leaders. The attack came on the weekend that the US and its ally Israel launched multiple strikes on Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

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DEVELOPING: FBI Raids Home of Far-Left Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent

The FBI executed a search warrant at the home of far-left Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

FBI agents also raided the school district headquarters.

“FBI LA confirms they are currently executing search warrants at two addresses, which a separate federal law enforcement source tells @FoxNews are the home and office of Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. LAUSD is the 2nd biggest school district in the country,” Fox News reporter Bill Melugin said.

“We are told the underlying affidavit in support of the search warrant is under seal, so it’s unclear what potential wrongdoing Carvalho may be suspected of,” Melugin said.

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At least 10 FBI staffers who worked on Mar-a-Lago documents case are fired, sources say

At least 10 FBI employees who worked on former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s retention of classified records after he left the White House in 2021 were fired on Wednesday, multiple sources told CBS News.

The firings came after Reuters reported that the FBI had subpoenaed records of phone calls made by FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles when they were still both private citizens as part of Smith’s probe into Trump.

The Reuters article quoted Patel, who alleged that the FBI had secretly subpoenaed his phone records “using flimsy pretexts and burying the entire process in prohibited case files designed to evade all oversight.” The Reuters article added that it had not independently verified any of Patel’s claims.

Patel did not provide any evidence of wrongdoing by the staff who were terminated.

Special Counsel Jack Smith oversaw two federal probes into now-President Trump. One case alleged he unlawfully tried to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, while the other focused on his retention of classified documents and efforts to obstruct the Justice Department when it asked him to return the files.

All of the FBI agents and analysts who were fired on Wednesday were involved with the classified documents case.

CBS News confirmed with a source familiar with the matter that Wiles’ records were reviewed as part of the documents case, but was unable to verify whether Patel’s were. In the case involving the 2020 election, known as Arctic Frost, Patel’s records were not subpoenaed, the source added.

CBS News has reached out to the FBI for comment.

The FBI Agents Association, which represents current and former agents, condemned the firings in a statement, saying they violate FBI employees’ due process rights.

“These actions weaken the Bureau by stripping away critical expertise and destabilizing the workforce, undermining trust in leadership and jeopardizing the Bureau’s ability to meet its recruitment goals—ultimately putting the nation at greater risk,” the group said.

Smith’s dual investigations into Mr. Trump led to the first federal criminal indictments against a former president in U.S. history. The classified document charges were dismissed by a federal judge in Florida in mid-2024 on the grounds that Smith was unlawfully appointed, and Smith dropped the 2020 election charges after Mr. Trump won the 2024 race.

Since then, the Trump administration has taken aim at federal employees who worked on the two cases. The Justice Department fired a group of prosecutors who worked on Smith’s team, and the FBI has fired agents involved in the Arctic Frost election investigation.

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FBI’s “Stand Down” Directive to NYPD on Jeffrey Epstein Investigations, and More

Just five days after Jeffrey Epstein’s arrest in the summer of 2019, federal authorities “directed” the New York Police Department to “stand down” its investigations related to Epstein, new documents released by the Department of Justice show. The directive applied to NYPD’s Special Victims Unit — the group specially trained and equipped to handle sex crimes and child abuse cases. At the time, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office (DANY) had an ongoing investigation involving Epstein’s victims, the documents reveal, but the FBI assumed that would come to a halt as well following the Bureau’s directive.

These revelations are just part of the chronology below, which spans 1996-2025. The timeline amounts to the most comprehensive record to date of the publicly available information on New York law enforcement authorities’ action and inaction with regard to Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and other potential co-conspirators. It is a long record of institutional failures though with some successes (including DANY’s more recent pursuits with at least one of the alleged co-conspirators). The timeline is provided for public education, especially given that New York was an epicenter of Epstein’s vast criminal conspiracy.

Notably, last week, the Office of New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez also revealed that his state’s “investigation was closed in 2019 at the request of the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.” The revelation came alongside Attorney General Raúl Torrez ordering the criminal investigation to now be “reopened.”

Readers’ may be interested in Ryan Goodman, Siven Watt and Joshua Kolb, Timeline of Jeffrey Epstein-Ghislaine Maxwell Law Enforcement Failures (1996-2025) published on August 18, 2025.

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FBI Wins Court Ruling to Keep Twitter Payments Secret

A federal judge has handed the FBI a win in its attempts to keep secrets. On February 4th, Chief Judge James Boasberg ruled that the bureau can keep secret the precise amounts it paid Twitter between 2016 and 2023 for complying with legal process requests.

Judicial Watch, which had sued under the Freedom of Information Act, walked away empty-handed.

We obtained a copy of the opinion for you here.

You may remember our earlier reporting on how the FBI was paying Twitter. The payments totaled at least $3.4 million between October 2019 and February 2021 alone. That figure emerged from the Twitter Files released in December 2022. The FBI has never confirmed it. Neither has Twitter. And now, thanks to Boasberg’s ruling, the quarterly breakdown that would show exactly when the money flowed, and how much, stays buried.

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