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Internet Absurdity: Bin Laden Listed at FOX Headquarters
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An Ohio man says he has located Osama bin Laden in the United States and wants to claim the U.S. government's $25 million reward.
Using an online person search built from phone directories and other public records, Thomas Potter of Olmsted Falls, Ohio, turned up three listings for "Usama bin Laden."
The first listing put the al Qaeda leader at the California headquarters of media giant FOX Entertainment Group. The second placed bin Laden in the office of a Bethesda, Md., Internet firm owned by the son of a former Defense Department official. And the third pinpointed bin Laden's secret hideout as an unidentified location in Hermitage, Tenn.
A self-described "househusband" and 9/11 skeptic -- "I am not a 9/11 conspiracy theorist," he says, "I just do not believe a word of the government's 9/11 conspiracy theory" -- Potter made his discovery this Sunday morning, as part of what he calls a years-long research effort to debunk the "official" version of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
Now, Potter says the government owes him the massive reward it promises to anyone with information leading to the capture of Osama bin Laden.
"I understand that the FBI is offering $25 million," Potter wrote in an e-mail to the Department of Justice, alerting them to his findings. "I would like to know if the reward is tax free and if I could please receive it in cash."
Calls to FOX and the Bethesda Internet firm failed to turn up America's most wanted terrorist.
"There's no Osama that works here. Obviously, this is some sort of a prank," FOX spokesman Scott Grogan told the Blotter on ABCNews.com.
"Unfortunately, I don't" have Osama bin Laden on the payroll, Phil Schmitz of Bethesda Interactive Solutions told ABCNews.com. "I'm sure you wouldn't be the first person to call me if I did."
Schmitz confirmed his father, Joseph, was the top Pentagon watchdog from 2002 to 2005. Joseph Schmitz then joined the Prince Group, which owns the private security contractor Blackwater USA.
"I promise you this has no relation to that," Schmitz said of his father's activities.
So how did bin Laden come to be associated with the two companies in the massive whitepages.com database? It's something of a mystery.
The site does not allow the public to add or amend entries in its database, although individuals can ask to have their information removed.
In an e-mail statement, the company told ABCNews.com only that their listings "originate from publicly available local telephone records and other public information sources." It declined to disclose any further information.
Shortly after ABCNews.com contacted whitepages.com, a search for "Usama Laden," the term Potter used, on the company's site returned only the Tennessee location for "Usama bin Laden." No phone number accompanies that listing.
Do you have a tip for Brian Ross and the Investigative Team?
June 7, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (58)
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You've completely run out of things to write about, haven't you?
Posted by: Bob Owens | Jun 7, 2007 2:46:49 PM
Yeah! I sam him and Elvis sittin' on the porch sippin'Jack!
Posted by: Gerald | Jun 7, 2007 2:58:39 PM
Hey, what do you know, you finally mentioned that an American thinks 9/11 is the largest coverup of the century, too bad that is about as far as you will go.
Posted by: Roger Peters | Jun 7, 2007 3:42:12 PM
Why not stick to news?
These types of "stories" degrade ABC's reputation.
Posted by: Jeffrey | Jun 7, 2007 3:45:37 PM
God forbid you should spend half as much time writing about actual corruption within this administration as you do wasting time on moronic stories like this.
Posted by: Harvey Bushell | Jun 7, 2007 3:46:51 PM
Its great showing the kind of idiotic kooks there are out there
Posted by: Dennis | Jun 7, 2007 3:58:43 PM
i want to hear about the place in tennessee
Posted by: kyle | Jun 7, 2007 4:24:45 PM
Actually he's been sighted in the office of the vice president - next to of course the DARK LOARD.
Posted by: Daniel | Jun 7, 2007 4:35:45 PM
They gave his body to walt's dudes to make a mechanical terror patsy.
Posted by: bob | Jun 7, 2007 4:44:30 PM
The Twoof is out there!
Ron Paul in 2008!
j/k
Posted by: Good Lt | Jun 7, 2007 4:51:10 PM
Sounds like an inside job Justin.
How about a story on the Iraqi parliment passing that binding resolution calling for withdrawal of coalition troops by 01/08?
Posted by: markg8 | Jun 7, 2007 5:08:09 PM
I think this is hilarious! I just hope the poor guy doesn't really believe he should get the money.
I think I did hear he is currently employed in the Pentagon somewhere though.
Posted by: Rob Coursin | Jun 7, 2007 6:31:27 PM
This fits PERFECTLY with Roger Ailes saying that Democrats who could not face Fox could not face Al Qaeda. It turns out he was being literal!
Posted by: Ken | Jun 7, 2007 7:16:24 PM
I too do not believe in the official US Government theary about 911.Mainstream media is a sham just like this Administration!
Posted by: Scott Murray | Jun 7, 2007 8:03:28 PM
Just think, $25 million reward and Usama has never been indicted for the 9-11 scam.
That's according to FBI spokesperson Rex Toombs (citing lack of evidence). Of course, you probably didn't know that, and now, you don't care.
Posted by: Ben Had | Jun 7, 2007 8:21:37 PM
bin laden is not even on the FBI's most wanted list.
He's just a boogy man for the WAR ON TERRA
Posted by: Bin Forgotten | Jun 7, 2007 8:52:21 PM
Check the White House basement. Osama's in a freezer, which is sitting next to the WMD's, of course, and he stinks on ice, too.
Posted by: Vinnie | Jun 7, 2007 9:10:58 PM
Bin Forgotten, UBL IS on the FBI's Top 10 M.W. List (and the FBI Top Terrorist List) for the twin embassy bombings in 1998. He was indicted on those crimes on November 4, 1998.
He was never formally indicted on charges relating to 9/11 (although he claimed responsibility in 2004). That is public knowledge; anybody can go onto the FBI website and find that out...
And Greg, just Google "Chinese riots 2007", and you'll see tons of news coverage of these recent events in rural parts of the country...
Posted by: Jazz | Jun 7, 2007 9:57:41 PM
Haven't you folks at ABC realized Osama, like Bush, is just a puppet? Osama is controlled by Pakistani ISI and Sudan, as well as elements of Saudi Arabia and the UAE...just like "al Qaeda", the new world order's favorite proxy spear tip. The same people controlling Islamic terror sway influence over the US, Israel and UK policy makers. It's doubtful Osama's even alive, and if he is...he's being protected by Pakistani ISI.
Posted by: newaffleorder | Jun 7, 2007 10:32:53 PM
Your pathetic attempt to frame this story as "hard-hitting", no-holds-barred reporting after such an outageous run of obsequious Administration-pandering coverage until the 2006 elections wins you no kudos, merely the contempt of the peopl who have watched and remembered your sellout for the past 6 years.
Posted by: John | Jun 7, 2007 11:19:17 PM
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