Anonymous' Barrett Brown Raided By FBI During Online Chat

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Anonymous' Barrett Brown Raided By FBI During Online Chat

Posted by Soulskill on Friday September 14, 2012 @09:12AM from the caught-on-tape dept.

SternisheFan sends this excerpt from Wired: "For the second time this year, self-proclaimed Anonymous spokesman Barrett Brown was raided by the FBI. The latest dramatic incident occurred late Wednesday evening while Brown and another woman identified by some as his girlfriend were participating in an online chat on TinyChat with other individuals. Two minutes into the recorded chat session, loud voices could be heard in the background of Brown's residence in Texas while the woman in the room with him was in front of the computer screen. She quickly closed the computer screen, but the audio continued to capture events in the room as the FBI appeared to strong-arm Brown to put handcuffs on him. Brown could be heard yelling in the background. A spokeswoman in the Dallas County sheriff's office confirmed to Wired that Brown was raided last night and was booked into the county jail around 11 p.m." (Warning: the video embedded with the article contains mature language.)

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Just self defense by cpu6502 · 2012-09-14 09:15 · Score: 4, Insightful

In my opinion every individual has a right to defend himself when an intruders (or intruders) suddenly busts down the door and puts you in fear for your life. I would have no problems if a resident shot & killed the intruders.

--
My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
1. Re:Just self defense by Anonymous Coward · 2012-09-14 09:19 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  True, but if they're wearing police uniforms you'll almost certainly get your butt kicked if you resist arrest. And they'll shoot back.
2. Re:Just self defense by CoderJoe · 2012-09-14 09:46 · Score: 2
  
  Even in a no-knock raid, if you fire on the police, and especially if you kill one of them, you are going to be in for a world of hurt from the brotherhood of blue.
3. Re:Just self defense by sjames · 2012-09-14 09:46 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  If they don't show credentials, it doesn't mean much. Any thug can yell police.
4. Re:Just self defense by silas_moeckel · 2012-09-14 10:00 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Have we stopped being civil? Was this guy a risk of flight? Did he have a history of violence? A friend committed mail fraud, they called him told him there was a warrant out for his arrest. He was asked to turn himself in, he got council they had time to review it. Assuming that everybody is a violet offender that will run is a core issue of our police system these days.
  
  --
  No sir I dont like it.
5. Re:Just self defense by silas_moeckel · 2012-09-14 10:02 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  And this is right how? That is exactly the abuse of power governments are supposed to protect us from.
  
  --
  No sir I dont like it.
6. Re:Just self defense by BlueStrat · 2012-09-14 10:54 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  Depends on the nature of the "arrest"- without a Warrant, they're not operating within their authority. Seriously.
  Doesn't matter.
  You'll still be ventilated if they even think you look like you're going to resist, whether or not the raid is legal or not. They're trained to treat every raid as if they were going up against hardened, experienced, and well-armed enemies.
  And that's what you are at that moment. An enemy to be neutralized and rendered helpless and harmless as swiftly as possible with the least risk to themselves. not the least risk to the people they're charged to protect, themselves.
  Whether or not you are guilty of anything isn't their job or worry. They are a paramilitary assault & entry team. They assault and enter like they face at least an equally-armed & trained force at a minimum. Until you are face-down, restrained/cuffed, and have been searched you are potentially a heavily-armed threat.
  Just look at how Amish dairy farmers were raided, and Gibson Guitars were raided. Guns drawn, like the Amish or a luthier normally pack an H&K MP5.
  Strat
  
  --
  Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
7. Re:Just self defense by SternisheFan · 2012-09-14 11:24 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  And if you ever do end up in ANY jail, be respectful to the guards, or they WILL hurt you badly. In the 90's I served 15 days in the county jail in Long Island. A guy who came in was "mouthy" to the guards there, after a couple of days they pulled him out of his cell, which was next to.mine)surrounded him (15guards) while one head guard kicked him mercilessly. Between every kick, the guard yelled, "Who's the big man NOW!! HUH? Who's the big man NOW!" I'll never forget this. Four days later they bring him back to his cell, and he must've gotten their 'message', because he didn't cause any more problems. So, if you're dealing with law enforcement, play it cool, my advice.
8. Re:Just self defense by shiftless · 2012-09-14 11:32 · Score: 2
  
  For bonus points put some long spikes at the bottom.
9. Re:Just self defense by hairyfeet · 2012-09-14 12:47 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Then in that case there shouldn't be a fricking no knock take down huh? lets face it if someone yell police while blasting down your door either with their feet or a fricking ram do you REALLY think you are gonna hear them over the exploding door?
  If you REALLY want to see what the problem is at its core watch "The largest gang in America" on YouTube, No bullshit, nothing made up, just actual footage of cops acting NO DIFFERENT than your average gang bangers. Bashing people's heads who haven't done shit, starting trouble just so they can pound on someone, its completely disgusting and even more so when you realize that the vast majority of cops on that video are STILL ON THE FORCE thus condoning that kind of behavior.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
10. Re:Just self defense by kelemvor4 · 2012-09-14 14:00 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Depends on the nature of the "arrest"- without a Warrant, they're not operating within their authority. Seriously.
  If you live within 100 miles of a U.S. Border, no warrant is needed. That's 66% of all Americans. http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/are-you-living-constitution-free-zone
11. Re:Just self defense by macraig · 2012-09-14 14:10 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  What you described is a police state in miniature. That we're engaged in scaling it up now doesn't seem to be open to much debate, only how far along we are. Such a lovely time to be an American.
12. Re:Just self defense by maitai · 2012-09-14 16:44 · Score: 2
  
  Busting in on someone playing in a chat room really has little chance of the guy having a rifle in his hand.
13. Re:Just self defense by phantomfive · 2012-09-14 19:11 · Score: 2
  
  Here is what Brown said:
  
  “Any armed official of the U.S. government, particularly the FBI, will be regarded as potential Zeta assassin squads,” he said in the video. “As FBI knows they know that I’m armed and I come from a military family and I was taught to shoot by a Vietnam veteran and I will shoot all of them and kill them if they come and do anything. I have reason to fear for my life.” “Frankly, it was pretty obvious I was going to be dead before I was 40 or so, so I wouldn’t mind going out with two FBI sidearms like a fucking Egyptian pharaoh. Adios.”
  It's not clear what the warrant was for, but I sure understand why they arrested him the way they did.
  
  --
  "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
14. Re:Just self defense by dna_(c)(tm)(r) · 2012-09-14 21:54 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  [...] They're trained to treat every raid as if they were going up against hardened, experienced, and well-armed enemies.[...]
  Just look at how Amish dairy farmers were raided, and Gibson Guitars were raided. Guns drawn, like the Amish or a luthier normally pack an H&K MP5.
  For the Europeans amongst us: That's what you get in return for the freedom to bear arms.
  For the US citizens amongst us: See your hard earned tax dollars at work.
15. Re:Just self defense by Larryish · 2012-09-15 05:37 · Score: 2
  
  To whoever modded this down, I just want to say one thing:
  http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kq22e2Sro01qzma4ho1_500.jpg
16. Re:Just self defense by Zero__Kelvin · 2012-09-15 14:02 · Score: 2
  
  Bullshit. Did you even read the page you linked to. Your link points to a page that talks about the stopping of searching of certain people in public, and has nothing to do with the requirement of a warrant to enter a private residence.
  
  --
  Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
Not news by girlintraining · 2012-09-14 09:16 · Score: 3, Insightful

"In other news, the spokesperson for an organization responsible for dozens of high profile electronic attacks, distributing classified data, and hundreds of other felonies was taken into custody today..."
Agree or disagree with Anonymous, it shouldn't be a surprise that he took the ride.

--
#fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
1. Re:Not news by girlintraining · 2012-09-14 09:28 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Generally, a spokesperson for a group of interest would be approached calmly, not raided (which makes it news).
  The spokespeople of multinational crime syndicates tend not to be well-regarded by law enforcement. I know, it's confusing.
  
  --
  #fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
2. Re:Not news by Applekid · 2012-09-14 09:31 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  Generally, a spokesperson for a group of interest would be approached calmly, not raided (which makes it news).
  The spokespeople of multinational crime syndicates tend not to be well-regarded by law enforcement. I know, it's confusing.
  Was Barrett armed? Was he dangerous? Was there any reason to believe he was a threat to the officers' personal safety whatsoever? People get taken into custody all the time without being raided. This was an excuse by the police to let out some steam by bashing down the door and busting heads.
  
  --
  More Twoson than Cupertino
3. Re:Not news by mooingyak · 2012-09-14 09:40 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  -- I got my nickname tsa long before the TSA existed so please refrain from making remarks about the TSA.
  OT, but
  I suppose you would describe the TSA as a bunch of no-talent ass clowns?
  
  --
  William of Ockham had no beard. The most likely explanation is that it was chewed off by squirrels every morning.
4. Re:Not news by Hatta · 2012-09-14 09:59 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  In other news, we're still waiting for Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of a company responsible for hundreds of felony counts of perjury and fraud, to take the same ride. The rule of law is dead in America.
  
  --
  Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
5. Re:Not news by Mitreya · 2012-09-14 10:16 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  The spokespeople of multinational crime syndicates tend not to be well-regarded by law enforcement. I know, it's confusing.
  Ah, you are one of "those" people
  As long as the person in question is likely/potentially an asshole, he deserves everything he gets, right? You don't even wonder if there had been a valid (i.e. legal) reason to arrest him.
  Next step would be to arrest and harass any lawyer that will dare to represent that guy. I mean, the guy's got some bad connections, so anyone working for him is probably fair game too.
6. Re:Not news by mmell · 2012-09-14 10:37 · Score: 2
  
  Add to this the allegation that he made public threats against an F.B.I. agent and the agent's family . . .
  But everyone here is right . . . the F.B.I. shouldn't have gone all S. S. on this guy. Now, if the agent who was threatened had come alone and blown Brown's brains out I would've found that perfectly acceptable. Of course, that agent would now be in custody facing charges of murder; but I'd like to think that a self-defense plea would work for him there.
  Yes, I know - I'm not supposed to RTFA before posting. Man, am I gonna get downmodded and flamed for this . . . but again, just because B. Brown is a hacker doesn't give him a free ticket to issue threats (which no matter how veiled they are were still threats) agains an F.B.I. agent and his children. If it had been the F.B.I. agents threating Mr. Brown and his family, everyone here would be organizing for war; but since it's Mr. Brown who made the threats, everyone here appears to be mobilizing for war.
  Just stop and think for with your heads instead of your endocrine systems for a minute, will ya folks?
7. Re:Not news by shiftless · 2012-09-14 11:40 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Hard drives can be destroyed in seconds. You do have to bust down the doors to get them in time... (though that should be saved for actual criminals, not internet trolls IMO)
  Define an "actual criminal"? Would you say people who are peacefully growing plants inside their own house and causing no harm to others are "actual criminals"? Because no-knock warrants are becoming more and more commonplace in the War on (Some) Drugs. How easy do you think it would be to destroy an entire garden full of plants leaving no trace of evidence? How much of an effect do you think the police announcing their presence beforehand would have on that?
  
  nd when you bust down doors you have to have guns because you don't know if the people inside have them and will react.
  Mother fucking bullshit. Stop repeating police state propaganda. Only if cop is a fucking moron would they have no clue whether someone is likely to be violent, etc. What a cheap, flimsy excuse to throw away our rights in favor of more police power.
  
  I agree on over-application of force and wouldn't disagree with the argument that the raid may not have been necessary in the first place, and I personally hate and distrust cops and want their powers scaled back...
  So why do you keep arguing and apologizing for them?
  
  ...but if law enforcement wants your HD without going through the use of a subpeona and the attendant risk that you'll wipe it first, this is really the only way for them to do that.
  Which is more important and worthy of protection: my rights, or the cops' God-given need to arrest and imprison people for non-violent "crimes"? It's either one or the other. Choose.
8. Re:Not news by elucido · 2012-09-14 12:07 · Score: 2
  
  "In other news, the spokesperson for an organization responsible for dozens of high profile electronic attacks, distributing classified data, and hundreds of other felonies was taken into custody today..."
  Agree or disagree with Anonymous, it shouldn't be a surprise that he took the ride.
  Yeah but at this point he cannot be considered as the spokesperson anymore. He just got raided, why would any active hacker or activist trust him now that he has been raided and arrested by the FBI? They can plant bugs in his house, they can force him to cooperate, so it's basically over for him. His days as an online spokesperson/activist are over and he will be lucky if he avoids prison.
9. Re:Not news by hairyfeet · 2012-09-14 12:59 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Oh horseshit, have you been watching CSI or something? Short of sticking explosive to the things ANY software based tool is gonna take a SERIOUSLY long time to even do a single pass and simply pulling the plug would kill that shit quick.
  Now one could argue that MAYBE, just maybe, he had something like truecrypt on the drive but if that was the case simply popping the power switch with his foot would be enough to unmount the drive so kicking in the door wouldn't help shit anyway and a better strategy would be to simply grab this guy on the way to his car where he don't know shit is going on or bug his PC when he isn't at home.
  Nope the whole point of shit like this is INTIMIDATION, its to make YOU scared to speak up against them. Look at this nice little Jewish girl that gets to be hassled and intimidated every time she flies anywhere by being put on the watchlist, her crime? Speaking about your constitutional rights.
  I'm sorry but LEOs aren't the good guys anymore, they are pitbulls used by the state to keep the peasants scared of speaking up or talking back.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
10. Re:Not news by Jafafa+Hots · 2012-09-14 16:19 · Score: 2
  
  I totally agree with you about law enforcement.
  All I'm saying is that IF someone wants to be sure they can grab your hard drive without you destroying it, they have to do it FAST.
  Which is what's WRONG with these police powers, they use this fact to justify busting in with guns... because they have a legitimate reason to IF we grant that they should have the right to seize hard drives in the first place in cases like this. I disagree with this, but the fact remains.
  I have read statements from people who leave their hard drive outside the case for that very reason - they can grab it quickly.
  I've destroyed a few obsolete drives myself experimentally.
  All a person would have to do is have their HD outside the case with a 22 caliber concrete nailer they got from Home Depot to quickly put several nails straight through the case and platters, most likely shattering the platters to bits in the process.
  Silly scenario? Sure, maybe - BUT if the police assume that the person expects to be raided, they sure might imagine such scenarios and design their raid accordingly.
  I'm not saying it's good or just or fair, but if you see their mindset it's hardly surprising or unexpected. Quite the opposite - if you are in a position to fear being raided, you'd be silly NOT to expect these tactics.
  
  --
  This space available.
11. Re:Not news by Stickerboy · 2012-09-15 03:14 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Generally, a spokesperson for a group of interest would be approached calmly, not raided (which makes it news).
  The spokespeople of multinational crime syndicates tend not to be well-regarded by law enforcement. I know, it's confusing.
  Was Barrett armed? Was he dangerous? Was there any reason to believe he was a threat to the officers' personal safety whatsoever? People get taken into custody all the time without being raided. This was an excuse by the police to let out some steam by bashing down the door and busting heads.
  How the fuck is this insightful? FTFA, in Barrett Brown's own words:
  "It’s toward the end of the video that Brown makes his threat: “Robert Smith’s life is over. So when I say life is over, I don’t say I’m going to kill him. But I’m going to ruin his life and look into his [expletive] kids because Aaron Barr did the same thing and he didn’t get raided for it. How do you like them apples?”
  Barr is the former HBGary Federal CEO whose email was hacked by Anonymous in February.
  He goes on: “Any armed officials of the U.S. government, particularly the FBI, will be regarded as potential Zeta assassin squads and they know that I’m armed and I will shoot all of them and kill them if they come and do anything because they are engaged in a criminal conspiracy and I have reason to fear for my life, not just from the zetas but from the U.S. government.”"
  Hmm. Publicly threatening to shoot anyone that approaches him that's wearing a police uniform. Gee, I don't know why they arrested him with a SWAT team.
  
  --
  Light a fire for a man and he'll be warm for a day. Light a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
AMERICA HELL YEAH by Anonymous Coward · 2012-09-14 09:17 · Score: 3, Funny

U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A.!
Barrett Brown only claimed to be Anonymous by Anonymous Coward · 2012-09-14 09:19 · Score: 5, Insightful

Barrett Brown is not Anonymous. Most of the Anons I know worth their salt think of him as a fraud. This is the problem of a leaderless, hierarchyless political movement: anyone can claim affiliation. All Barrett did was claim to orchestrate some invisible campaign against Mexican drug gangs, of which no evidence was ever actually presented, and idiot reporters lined up to print his lies verbatim.
Barrett Brown claimed affiliation with Encyclopedia Dramatica, another Internet community, on Twitter recently. Current and former ED admins lined up to denounce him as never being known there.
Barrett Brown is a liar and a fraud. His days are up now that he's finally committed the crime of threatening an FBI agent. There's no way he's getting bail.
1. Re:Barrett Brown only claimed to be Anonymous by Sydin · 2012-09-14 09:38 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  So he's an attention whore. That's all fine and dandy, but the last time I checked the FBI had better things to do. You just said it yourself: There's no evidence at all that he had anything to do with anonymous, its activities, or any of its affiliated groups, everything about the guy can be laid at the feet of the media, who are more than happy to sensationalize lies. If the layman on the internet knows that, the FBI knows that. So why are they raiding his house? What's there to gain? Well, it sends a strong message. It scares people. Oh right, that's what the FBI is for these days. Barrett Brown's lack of affiliation with anonymous isn't what makes this newsworthy, it's that despite knowing that, the FBI were more than happy to ruin him in order to send a message.
2. Re:Barrett Brown only claimed to be Anonymous by BlueStrat · 2012-09-14 11:47 · Score: 2
  
  In a profanity-laced tirade, Brown threatens in the video to strike back at Smith.
  "So that's why Robert Smith's life is over," Brown said. "But when I say his life is over, I don't say I'm going to go kill him. But I am going to ruin his life and look into his (expletive) kids."
  Brown then smiles before adding: "How do you like them apples?"
  
  are you saying he shouldn't be arrested for that?
  Many political "opposition research" teams as well as political organizations and groups attack enemies the way Barrett describes. Heck, the government uses such tactics when they deem it to their advantage. Look what kinds of tactics were employed against Sarah Palin, for example. Teams of investigators and lawyers flown into AK, pouring over every detail they could dig up to destroy her. This isn't limited to one political party or ideology either.
  Are you saying they should be arrested?
  Strat
  
  --
  Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
Re:What's with the audio? by TheSwift · 2012-09-14 10:01 · Score: 2

I think there's a transcript on pastebin if you look through the article. Not sure I'm convinced that it caught all of those words though. They sound pretty unintelligible to me. Moreover, how did they know he was getting handcuffed? For all we know, he may have just seen a light shining in his window and he started having a seizure and began screaming.

--
"With patience a ruler may be persuaded, and a soft tongue will break a bone."
The guys who leak stolen credit card data? by gelfling · 2012-09-14 11:43 · Score: 2

Curb stomp him and throw his dead body on his mom's lawn.
he threatened an FBI agent by YesIAmAScript · 2012-09-14 12:00 · Score: 2

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2012/09/anonymous-spokesperson-barrett-brown-raided-arrested-in-dallas.html/
So that's why he's being cuffed and treated as threatening.
Maybe you should ask Barret Brown if we've stopped being civil?

--
http://lkml.org/lkml/2005/8/20/95
Wrong people for the job by dbIII · 2012-09-14 19:04 · Score: 4, Insightful

Sending in a paramilitary force to arrest some guy for a crime that is of the same degree of violence as stealing a stapler from a workplace really just shows a lack of professionalism and a willingness to waste resources on overkill. I wonder what the real soldiers think of these idiots playing soldiers in such minor situations. What good is a SWAT team if they are diluted so much that their members are unlikely to meet situations where they are actually required? A hundred curb stomp situations is a pointless amount of experience for a group that you want to rely on when there is a real threat of something requiring a paramilitary response.
This guy is no hero for humanity. by SternisheFan · 2012-09-15 00:19 · Score: 2

You are not in the right when you threaten to somehow commit violence on another person. It's the law, and it's a damn good law. Brown, whose brain appears to not have yet recovered completely from his drug using days, crossed that line. He brought this attention on himself. He's not a hero, he's not rational, he acts pretty deranged. What he really is is another good example to young people why they should not allow themselves to get involved with opiate consumption of any sort, heroin or it's legal prescription pill form. If you're hooked on it now seek help and treatment, before you end up like this poor tortured soul. Heroin addiction is not cool, and it causes you to make some real bad life decisions. Like this guy has. Life's 'heros' are, imho, the people who live within the law, all other's are just 'posers'.