Records: CBP cited child abuse; alert said terrorism probe
Original title: DHS Said They Searched Man Who Wiped GrapheneOS Phone for Child Abuse Material. They Lied
Samuel Tunick faces up to five years for allegedly wiping a GrapheneOS phone during a January 2025 Atlanta inspection.
Newly filed court records say a Homeland Security Investigations email told Customs and Border Protection to stop Stop Cop City activist Samuel Tunick at Atlanta in January 2025 for suspected terrorist activities and to seize his electronics and passcodes. During questioning, CBP officers instead asked about child sexual abuse material. Tunick’s lawyers say an officer later acknowledged there was no reason to believe he possessed such material, and they argue the questions were a pretext. He is charged with allegedly wiping a Google Pixel running GrapheneOS and faces a maximum of five years.
Unconfirmed: The wiping charge is an allegation; the defense disputes the stated reason for the device search.
- The HSI email named Delta flight 1778 arriving at Atlanta at 19:30.
- Lawyers say Officer Findley admitted there was no basis to suspect illegal images.
- Defense counsel said he found only one earlier case using the same statute.
- Tunick is not described as suspected of any crime other than wiping the phone.
- Products
- GrapheneOS
- Organizations
- Department of Homeland SecurityCustoms and Border ProtectionHomeland Security Investigations
- Countries
- United States
From the original article
3 min read at 404media.co
Officials said they wanted to search the phone of Samuel Tunick, a Stop Cop City activist, for child abuse material. It was actually because he was suspected of “terrorist activities.”
By Joseph Cox · 404media.co
A short excerpt; the article and its images belong to the publisher. Summary, key facts and assessment above are AI-written from the article and can be wrong.