November 9, 2021
The FBI conducted an early-Saturday morning raid of Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe’s Mamaroneck, N.Y. apartment, located just north of New York City, in regards to a diary belonging to presidential daughter Ashley Biden that was reportedly stolen.
The raid came roughly two days after federal agents raided the homes of two Project Veritas journalists, which O’Keefe acknowledged in a lengthy video statement posted online Friday.
“An FBI spokesman on Saturday said that agents had ‘performed law enforcement activity’ at the building, but would not discuss the investigation,” The New York Times reported. The paper was unable to provide further details.
But in his Friday video, O’Keefe blasted the Biden Justice Department and the FBI who he suggested were targeting his journalism organization for political retribution.
“I awoke to the news that apartments and homes of Project Veritas journalists, or former journalists, had been raided by FBI agents. It appears the Southern District of New York now has journalists in their sights for the supposed ‘crime’ of doing their jobs lawfully and honestly. Or at least, this journalist,” he said.
O’Keefe went on to say that the Times contacted him for a statement, adding he wasn’t sure how the paper was aware of the raids on his journalists and hinted that perhaps the Times had been tipped off.
“We do not know how The New York Times was aware of the execution of a search warrant at our reporter’s home, or the subject matter of the search warrant, as a Grand Jury investigation is secret,” he said.
O’Keefe went on to explain that last year prior to the November election, his organization was contacted by people claiming to have possession of Ashley Biden’s diary. He said the “tipsters” came into possession of the diary after it was allegedly left behind by mistake in a hotel room Ashley Biden had stayed in.
“The tipsters indicated that they were negotiating with a different media outlet for the payment of monies for the diary. The tipsters were represented by attorneys who handled the negotiations with Project Veritas,” O’Keefe said, adding that in the end, his organization could not verify that the diary, in fact, belonged to the president’s daughter and if the contents therein were authentic.
“We attempted to return the diary to an attorney representing Ms. Biden, but that attorney refused to authenticate it. Project Veritas gave the diary to law enforcement to ensure it could be returned to its rightful owner. We never published it,” O’Keefe said.
“Now, Ms. Biden’s father’s Department of Justice, specifically the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, appears to be investigating the situation, claiming the diary was stolen,” O’Keefe said.
“We don’t know if it was, but it begs the question: In what world is the alleged theft of a diary investigated by the president’s FBI and his Department of Justice? A diary! This federal investigation smacks of politics. Project Veritas never threatened or engaged in any illegal conduct,” he added.
The raids were ripped online by some conservative pundits who also suggested that the raids smacked of political retribution against the conservative investigative journalism organization.
“The FBI becoming the enforcement arm of the Democratic Party is something you’re going to wish you paid more attention to in the coming years. Trust me on that. It’s officially dangerous,” Jesse Kelly, a talk radio figure and host of a program on The First streaming network, noted.
“The Southern District of New York is trying to criminalize Journalism. Are there any real journalists left in corporate ‘media’ who will speak out against this?” Benny Johnson added.
“I feel like the real reason the FBI is raiding James O’Keefe is because they want to know who [h]is contacts are and who he’s planted at the top levels of government. He’s been exposing the corruption and now the corruption is coming for him. We must all support Project Veritas!” wrote author and podcast host Candace Owens, who noted earlierthat the president’s daughter “is the SECOND person in the Biden family that has made incestuous sexual allegations,” going on to reference contents on son Hunter Biden’s laptop involving his niece.
The FBI becoming the enforcement arm of the Democratic Party is something you’re going to wish you paid more attention to in the coming years. Trust me on that. It’s officially dangerous. — Jesse Kelly (@JesseKellyDC) November 6, 2021
The Southern District of New York is trying to criminalize Journalism. Are there any real journalists left corporate “media” who will speak out against this? https://t.co/uomRPrbCQW — Benny (@bennyjohnson) November 6, 2021
I feel like the real reason the FBI is raiding James O’Keefe is because they want to know who is contacts are and who he’s planted at the top levels of government. He’s been exposing the corruption and now the corruption is coming for him. We must all support Project Veritas! — Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) November 6, 2021
If the Ashley Biden Diary isn’t real, why did the FBI raid James O’Keefe? If the Ashley Biden Diary is real, why did the FBI raid James O’Keefe? This is a lose-lose for FBI and Biden. Using your goon squad to raid reporters is still “a bridge too far” for most judges in 2021. — Cernovich (@Cernovich) November 6, 2021
If there was any justice in this world, James O’Keefe would win the Pulitzer Prize every year. — ERIK FINMAN (@erikfinman) November 6, 2021
Who else thinks the FBI used the diary as an excuse to raid James O’Keefe’s home — alyssamariiee (@alyssadehen) November 7, 2021
SOURCE: BPR