Shaq & Co. raid the wrong house in a child p*rn sting

http://www.theagitator.com/archives/027150.php#027150


October 23, 2006 From the Files of "**** You Can't Make Up:" Shaquille O'Neal Terrorizes Innocent Family in Wrong-Door SWAT Raid.

Extremely weird botched raid in Bedford County, Virginia, in which a family was terrorized at gunpoint by a raiding SWAT team on an Internet child p*rn raid. As it turns out, the special anti-child p*rn police unit, called the"Blue Ridge Thunder," made a mistake while tracing the IP address, and sent the raid team to the wrong home. Here's the raid victim's letter to the editor.

That all would be strange enough. But it gets weirder. If you read through this MetaFilter thread, it appears that of all people, NBA star Shaquille O'Neal participated in this raid -- as a police officer. One MeFi poster who lives in the area claims to have seen O'Neal. Another says O'Neal's presence on the raid was confirmed in the local newspaper -- which unfortunately doesn't make its articles available online. This press release from the Roanoke district of the U.S. Marshals Service --which assists the Blue Ridge Thunder task force in executing raids -- seems to confirm that Shaq is indeed a reserve member of the force:

Deputies of the Bedford County Sheriff's Office assigned to the Blue Ridge Thunder and Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task forces are Special Deputy U.S. Marshals also assigned to the Marshals Service's Blue Ridge Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (BRFAST) in the Western District of Virginia. Deputy U.S. Marshals in Roanoke assist Blue Ridge Thunder investigators in the tracking and apprehension of fugitive sexual predators identified by the task force.

United States Marshal G. Wayne Pike worked with Sheriff Brown and the Department of Justice to solidify Shaq as a Honorary Deputy U.S. Marshal in furtherance of the missions of these crime fighting initiatives. "Shaq has always been a tremendous friend and supporter of law enforcement," said Marshal Pike. I am pleased to have him as a member of our fugitive task force as we all work together to protect our most valuable natural resource, our children."

Shaq will work with task force investigators during his basketball off season time to help "guard the net" from sexual predators. Sheriff Brown said he was "honored and proud" to have Shaq as a Reserve Deputy with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office and the Blue Ridge Thunder task force. "Shaq will be a tremendous asset in helping law enforcement, parents, and communities fight online crime and sexual exploitation of children," said Sheriff Brown.

This article from a local newspaper doesn't mention the mistaken raid, but the dates, town, and police department are consistent with the botched raid outline above, putting Shaq at the scene of the botched raid:

Miami Heat star Shaquille O'Neal spent last weekend in Bedford and the surrounding area.

O'Neal, who last year generated plenty of publicity with his stop here in August 2005, kept a lower profile this time around.

[...]

He arrived in Bedford Friday and left Sunday morning.

According to Sheriff Mike Brown, Shaq did some computer work with Blue Ridge Thunder and helped with a drug raid and in executing a search warrant for child p*rn.

Note that Shaq is more than just a symbolic "honorary" officer. He was given a sidearm. He's an actual reserve officer, despite not living -- nor having ever lived -- anywhere near the area. And they sent him on a friggin' SWAT raid.

I'm speechless.