The former FBI informant charged with lying about the Bidens’ dealings in Ukraine told investigators that Russian intelligence officials were involved in passing him false information about Hunter Biden, according to prosecutors. Alexander Smirnov claimed to have extensive contacts with foreign intelligence officials, including high-level Russian spies, and admitted that officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story about Hunter Biden.
Republican congressman Tim Burchett shared false information on social media about the Kansas City shooting, falsely identifying an innocent man as a shooter. The post garnered significant attention and led to the man receiving death threats. After being contacted by Knox News, Burchett deleted the post and acknowledged the misinformation, attributing it to incorrect news reports. The man falsely accused of involvement in the shooting is not pursuing legal action but has urged for the truth to be made known.
The SEC has revealed that a false press release about a major retailer accepting bitcoin was issued after the perpetrator fraudulently switched the company's phone number. This incident highlights the potential risks associated with false information in the cryptocurrency space and the need for robust regulation to prevent such fraudulent activities.
The El Paso Police Department retracted false information in a press release about an 18-year-old facing charges in a fatal hit-and-run, after initially alleging that he stole items from the victim's car before fleeing the scene. The attorney representing the teenager, Ruger Garrett Clark, criticized the handling of the investigation, claiming it has led to mistrust. The EPPD apologized for the error and clarified that Clark took items from his own vehicle, not the victim's.
A Russian national, Sergey Vladimirovich Ochigava, has been charged after allegedly sneaking onto a plane in Denmark bound for Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) without a passport or visa. Ochigava provided false and misleading information about his travel to the United States and was observed switching seats and consuming multiple meals during the flight. Authorities found incomplete passport parts and an Israeli ID card in his bag. Ochigava claimed to have a PhD in economics and marketing but could not recall how he got on the plane or explain his presence in Copenhagen.
The explosion at a home in Arlington, Virginia, was not caused by a firefight with U.S. federal agents, contrary to online claims. The Arlington County Police Department confirmed that no federal agencies were present when the house exploded. An investigation into the cause of the explosion is ongoing. Social media posts suggesting that federal agents were involved and that the blast ignited a gas pipeline or a suicide vest are false.
Bank of America has been fined $12 million by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for repeatedly sending false information to federal regulators. The CFPB found that the bank violated the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act by failing to collect required demographic data from mortgage applicants and falsely reporting that 100% of applicants opted not to provide their demographic information. In addition to the fine, the CFPB is requiring Bank of America to take measures to stop its illegal data-collection practice.
Russian artist Alexandra Skochilenko, known as Sasha, is facing a possible eight-year jail sentence for replacing supermarket price tags with anti-war slogans protesting Russia's military operation in Ukraine. The state prosecutor has accused her of knowingly spreading false information about the Russian army. Skochilenko, who denies the charge, is being tried under Russia's tightened laws on dissent. Amnesty International has declared her a prisoner of conscience. The next hearing in her case will take place on November 13.
A lawyer representing one of George Santos' former treasurers, Tom Datwyler, has retracted previous statements and apologized to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for submitting false information on behalf of his client. The lawyer, Derek Ross, claims that Datwyler provided him with inaccurate information, suggesting a cover-up of a sham operation to conceal the true identity of the person running Santos' campaign finances. The retraction comes after The Daily Beast's reporting revealed that Datwyler had operated as a shadow treasurer for Santos, despite publicly disavowing that role. The revelations add to the legal challenges faced by Santos, who is already under federal investigation for various charges, including campaign finance crimes.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has filed a lawsuit against Freedom Mortgage Corporation, accusing the company of submitting mortgage loan data that contained numerous errors, violating the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) and a 2019 consent order. This comes after Freedom Mortgage was fined $1.75 million in August 2023 for illegal kickbacks. The CFPB alleges that the company's HMDA data for 2020 had widespread inaccuracies, with errors in over 174,000 data entries affecting nearly 20% of its mortgage loan applications. The lawsuit seeks to stop Freedom's alleged unlawful conduct and impose a civil money penalty.
A Russian court has fined Apple and the Wikimedia Foundation for failing to remove content deemed to be "false information" about Russia's military actions in Ukraine. The Wikimedia Foundation was fined 3 million rubles ($33,000) for retaining material on Russian-language Wikipedia pages that violated a law against discrediting Russia's military, while Apple was fined 400,000 rubles ($4,400) for not deleting podcasts and apps with similar information. Russia has been cracking down on criticism or questioning of its military campaign in Ukraine, with some critics receiving severe punishments.
A passenger on an Alaska Airlines flight was arrested for making a false bomb threat, claiming he did so to evade members of a drug cartel who were out to get him. The passenger handed a note to a flight attendant stating that there was a bomb on the plane and threatened to detonate it if the plane landed in Seattle. The flight was diverted to Spokane, where the passenger was arrested. No explosive devices were found on the plane. The passenger stated that he wanted to be arrested to avoid the cartel, as he believed they would torture and kill him upon landing in Seattle.
A passenger on an Alaska Airlines flight from Atlanta to Seattle was accused of making a bomb threat, claiming that he did so to escape members of a cartel who were waiting to torture and kill him in Seattle. The plane was diverted to Spokane, Washington, where the passenger was detained, but no explosives were found. The passenger stated that he made the false threat in the hope of being arrested. This incident follows a similar incident on another Alaska Airlines flight a few months prior. The passenger now faces charges of false information and hoaxes, with a possible prison sentence of up to five years and a fine of $250,000 if convicted.
The mother of missing 6-year-old Noel Rodriguez-Alvarez claimed she sold him to an unknown woman at a grocery store, according to a search warrant. The boy's uncle told police he witnessed the mother abusing him. Police have not found any evidence to support the claim that the child was sold. The mother and her husband fled to Turkey and India with six of her children after investigators began looking into Noel's disappearance. A felony warrant was issued for the mother and her husband after they gave false information regarding the child's whereabouts.
