Author: NOVA Corp

A senior U.S. intelligence official described a close-range encounter with fast-moving, “super-hot” unidentified objects that came within roughly 10 feet of a helicopter during an aerial search, according to newly released Pentagon UFO files.

The account is detailed in an FBI Form 302 interview report, which documents interactions between federal agents and witnesses, and is part of a broader tranche of previously classified unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) records made public Friday as part of the Trump administration’s push to declassify government files on them. 

The objects were detected as “super-hot” on infrared systems and traveled roughly 20 miles at speeds the helicopter could not match, according to the report, before abruptly changing direction and accelerating away.

UFO EXPERT WARNS MYSTERY CRAFT ARE OUTMANEUVERING US MILITARY IN RESTRICTED AIRSPACE

The release has drawn significant attention, as it includes previously unseen reports involving military personnel, sensor data and firsthand accounts from government officials — though many of the incidents remain unexplained.

The official was among multiple federal and state personnel involved in an aerial search after earlier sightings of unexplained lights, according to the report. The object was detected as “super-hot” on infrared systems, indicating it emitted a strong heat signature detectable by thermal imaging equipment. 

The report does not offer an explanation for the source of that heat, and was observed traveling roughly 20 miles at a speed too fast for the helicopter to match. 

The report does not identify the specific military facility or location of the encounter, and it is unclear from the document whether the helicopter involved was operated by U.S. military personnel or a partner agency. 

The FBI summary describes a joint operation involving federal and state personnel, but does not provide additional detail about the units involved.

At one point, one of the objects reportedly came within roughly 10 feet of the helicopter before abruptly changing direction. Observers, including the intelligence official and helicopter crew, also reported the object splitting into multiple lights, followed by additional orbs appearing in sequence and forming repeated patterns across the sky.

Witnesses described groups of four or five glowing objects flaring into view and then disappearing, a cycle that continued for roughly 30 minutes.

Pilots involved in the search indicated they were recording, but many of the sightings occurred above the helicopter and outside the camera’s field of view.

The documents are part of a sweeping public release of UAP files that has drawn intense interest and skepticism.

Officials and analysts say that while some incidents were treated as credible and investigated using military assets, the material does not offer definitive explanations for what the objects are.

While many of the newly released files contain brief or heavily redacted accounts, the FBI interview stands out for its detailed timeline, multiple trained observers and the use of infrared systems, night-vision equipment and aircraft during an active search operation.

The report also includes a first-hand account from a senior intelligence official, which is uncommon among the largely anecdotal or historical records in the broader release.

Skeptics say many UAP sightings can be attributed to misidentified aircraft, drones, atmospheric phenomena or sensor artifacts, particularly in complex environments where infrared and night-vision systems can distort how objects appear.

Physicist and former director of the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office Sean Kirkpatrick said he didn’t find anything “unexpected” in the files.

“There’s nothing unexpected in their release. And without any analysis or context, [it] will only serve to fuel more speculation, conspiracy and armchair pseudoscience, particularly from the playhouse politics theater company,” he said, according to the Scientific American. 

TRUMP ADMIN RELEASES HIGHLY ANTICIPATED FILES DOCUMENTING UFOS, ‘EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE’

The release also comes amid growing concern inside the Pentagon over unexplained aerial activity near sensitive military installations, including suspected foreign surveillance operations and unauthorized drone incursions linked to China and Russia.

Defense officials repeatedly warned in recent years that some incidents initially categorized as UAP could ultimately involve foreign intelligence collection platforms, advanced drones or other surveillance systems operating near U.S. military sites.

The issue drew renewed attention after a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon crossed the continental United States in 2023 before being shot down by the U.S. military, exposing gaps in detection and monitoring around sensitive defense infrastructure.

Lawmakers and defense officials also have raised alarms about repeated drone incursions near military bases, training ranges and nuclear facilities, warning that some unidentified aerial activity may reflect increasingly sophisticated foreign surveillance efforts rather than extraterrestrial phenomena.

“The latest UAP videos, photos, and original source documents from across the entire United States government are all in one place — no clearance required,” the White House said in a statement announcing the release.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the records had “long fueled justified speculation” and argued “it’s time the American people see it for themselves,” while cautioning that many of the documents contain unresolved incidents rather than confirmed explanations.

Other files released by the Department of War include reports of a “football-shaped” object observed over the East China Sea, erratic lights tracked over Iraq and Syria, and Apollo-era astronaut communications describing strange objects and bright fragments visible near the moon.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for more details. 

Embattled Soros-backed prosecutor Steve Descano is facing scrutiny again, this time for dismissing a Justice Department probe into allegations that he gave favorable deals to illegal immigrants, calling it one of President Donald Trump’s “partisan attacks.”

Jennifer Harrison, head of the Victim Rights Reform Council, responded to Fairfax County, Virginia, Commonwealth’s Attorney Descano’s claim by writing on X, “Hey scumbag … This has NOTHING to do with President Trump and it’s not going to be the fundraising tool you thought it would – no Soros blood money for you today.”

The DOJ opened a “pattern or practice” civil rights investigation into Descano last week, examining whether his office violated federal law by weighing “immigration consequences” in charging decisions and plea deals, amid an ongoing spate of violent crime in Fairfax County involving illegal immigrants.

Victim Rights Reform Council requested that the DOJ launch an investigation on behalf of Cheryl Minter, whose daughter, Stephanie Minter, was fatally stabbed at a bus stop earlier this year, allegedly by Abdul Jalloh, a 32-year-old illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone.

DOJ OPENS INVESTIGATION INTO SOROS-BACKED DA ACCUSED OF SHIELDING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM CONSEQUENCES

Descano responded to the DOJ investigation through spokeswoman Laura Birnbaum, who wrote in a statement that “this investigation is the latest example of the Trump administration’s own ‘pattern or practice’ of misusing the Justice Department to launch partisan attacks.”

Birnbaum said the “DOJ’s letter announcing the investigation distorts the office’s policy,” which she said has “been in place publicly for over five years – and happened to arrive just a week before Commonwealth’s Attorney Descano is set to testify before Congress.”

Descano, whose entry into political office was propelled by a massive $627,653 donation from the Soros family’s Justice and Public Safety PAC, is set to testify before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement on Thursday.

The hearing is titled “Fairfax County, Virginia: The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary Policies.” County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid will also testify, along with Minter, former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, and Virginians for Safe Communities President Sean Kennedy.

SOROS-BACKED DA’S LAX ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION POLICIES LED TO ‘PREVENTABLE’ BUS STOP STABBING MURDER: COMPLAINT

Birnbaum insisted, “Our office’s policies are fair, legal, and reflect the values of Fairfax County.”

She said Descano’s office “will not be distracted from our mission of keeping this community safe and holding individuals accountable when they commit crimes.”

In response, Harrison said the civil rights investigation was initiated after a request from a victim’s loved one.

“Hey scumbag – Cheryl Minter, mother of Stephanie filed the complaint that initiated the investigation. I know bc I filed it on her behalf,” wrote Harrison.

She continued, “We are also well aware that your deadly and disastrous policies were in place for quite some time – if not Cheryl’s daughter Stephanie would still be alive which is why we filed the complaint and asked for this investigation.”

DEM GOVERNOR UNDER FIRE AFTER ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY STABS WOMAN TO DEATH AT BUS STOP: ‘HEINOUS’

In another X post, Harrison called the victim’s mother “an amazing, brave woman,” writing, “We cannot bring Stephanie back but we can make sure this does not keep happening in her honor.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Descano’s office for comment.

In a press release following Minter’s death, the Department of Homeland Security claimed that Descano’s office had been warned about Jalloh and the danger he posed to the public ahead of Minter’s death.

Last week, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said the investigation into Descano would zero in on his plea bargaining, charging decisions and sentencing policies.

“Under my leadership, the Civil Rights Division will not allow local prosecutors to pick and choose winners based on their immigration status,” said Dhillon, adding, “This investigation will uncover whether this prosecutor is putting the community at risk in offering sweetheart deals to illegal immigrants charged with serious crimes.”

Fox News Digital also reached out to the DOJ and White House for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Leo Briceno and Ashley Oliver contributed to this report.

Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., cautioned Republicans to be “very careful what you pray for” amid a Trump-backed effort by Republican South Carolina state lawmakers to redraw the state’s map — an effort that would target Clyburn, the lone Democratic member of the state’s U.S. House of Representatives.

Deemed a “kingmaker” within the Democratic Party, Clyburn’s endorsement of then–presidential candidate Joe Biden during the 2020 election was widely credited with helping Biden win the presidency. He has been in Congress for more than 30 years, but now faces uncertainty as the South Carolina legislature voted Wednesday to consider redrawing the state’s congressional lines.

However, in an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union,” Clyburn said he believed he would win his seat for an 18th term, adding that if Republicans are successful with their redistricting effort in South Carolina, there are “possibilities of at least three Democrats” being elected to Congress in the state.

“I don’t know why people think I could not get re-elected if they redistrict South Carolina,” Clyburn said. “I have a district that’s about 45% African American. I have no idea what the number will be after the legislature finishes, but whatever that number is, I will be running on my record and America’s promise.”

GOP GOVERNOR NOMINEE PUSHES REDISTRICTING TO OUST STATE’S LONE HOUSE DEM

Clyburn took to X on Thursday, accusing Republicans of trying to “break” his district after the state House voted Wednesday to consider redrawing the state’s congressional map.

“Republicans in the South Carolina state legislature began the process of extending their session to allow for the redrawing of the state’s congressional map — with one goal in mind: eliminating the state’s only Democratic House district that is occupied by a Democrat,” Clyburn posted on X.

“This fight is bigger than one district,” Clyburn continued. “It’s about whether our democracy belongs to the people, or to politicians who change the rules when they don’t like the results.”

A Clyburn spokesperson pointed to the congressman’s X posts when reached for additional comment. 

The South Carolina legislature vote came in response to the Supreme Court ruling last month in Louisiana v. Callais, which determined in a 6-3 decision that the state’s push to create a second majority-Black district was unconstitutional. The ruling set stricter criteria for establishing a district based on constituents’ racial makeup, creating an opportunity for states to reexamine minority-majority districts first established under the Voting Rights Act.

“This decision threatens to send our country deeper into the thicket of never-ending redistricting fights, with repeated aggressive map redraws, protracted legal battles, and relentless partisan tugs-of-war, all of which are destined to result in more regressive court decisions,” Clyburn said of the Supreme Court’s ruling.

“This court seems hellbent on redeeming the post-Reconstruction America that neutered the 1875 Civil Rights Act and other legislative and judicial actions that drastically limited Black participation and achievement, and eliminated African American political representation in multiple Southern states,” Clyburn continued.

Following Clyburn’s rallying call to Democrats, a South Carolina House subcommittee on Friday voted 3-2 to advance legislation that would push back the state’s June 9 primary election by two months. The goal is to give the legislature more time to pass its redrawn map, which would give Republicans a 7-0 advantage in the House. However, even if the primary election is pushed back, the effort has been deemed a difficult process and will likely confuse voters, state Election Commission Executive Director Conway Belangia told The State.

The South Carolina Election Commission noted that more than 6,000 absentee ballots have already been mailed out to military service members and overseas voters ahead of the June primary, and more than 200 ballots have already been mailed back.

BLOCKBUSTER SUPREME COURT VOTING RIGHTS RULING IGNITES REDISTRICTING WAR ACROSS SOUTHERN STATES

The state House Judiciary Committee held its own hearing centered on the state’s redistricting push. During the hearing, Belangia estimated that it would cost between $2.2 million and $2.5 million to move the state’s primary to August.

House members suggested allocating $2 million in the state’s budget next year to cover the expected litigation costs from a legal fight over the map.

Fox News Digital reached out to South Carolina’s Senate Majority Conference for further comment.

South Carolina Republicans’ push to redraw the state’s map is the latest move by GOP-led states to revise congressional districts in an effort to maintain the party’s majority following the midterm elections.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., first suggested weeks ago that South Carolina lawmakers consider targeting Clyburn’s district, responding to Virginia Democrats’ successful push to pass a ballot measure redrawing that state’s congressional map, which resulted in a 10-1 advantage for Democrats. However, the Virginia Supreme Court overruled the state’s map on Friday, causing major uproar from Democrats.

President Donald Trump called out the “piece of garbage” peace proposal from Iran on Monday from the Oval Office, saying only “stupid people” in Iran are questioning his resolve in guaranteeing Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.

The latest Iranian proposal reneged on a past vow to give up enriched uranium, according to Trump.

“They come back, and they want to negotiate, and they give us a stupid — it’s a stupid proposal and nobody would take it,” Trump said. “Although Obama would have taken it, Biden would have taken it.”

Trump said Iranian officials had previously agreed to allow the removal of enriched nuclear material from a site he described as “obliterated” by U.S. strikes, but then omitted that commitment from the written proposal sent to Washington.

“They said you’re going to have to take it: We were going to go with them,” Trump said. “But they changed their mind because they didn’t put it in the paper.

“When they sent us this document that we waited four days for, that should have taken 10 minutes to do: Look, very simple, we get that, they guarantee no nuclear weapons for a very long period of time and a couple of other minor things, but they just can’t get there,” he continued. “So they agree with us, and then they take it back.”

Trump said the U.S. would not accept any arrangement that leaves Iran with a path to a nuclear weapon.

“The plan is very simple. Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and they won’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. “And they didn’t want to go that far.”

“If you can believe it, how stupid. Are they stupid people?” Trump asked. “They didn’t want to believe it. They think that, well, I’ll get tired of this, or I’ll get bored, or I’ll have some pressure. But there’s no pressure. There’s no pressure at all.”

The ceasefire with Iran was in serious jeopardy after the latest offer, Trump warned.

“It’s unbelievably weak,” Trump said. “After reading that piece of garbage they sent us. I didn’t even finish reading it.

“I’m not going to waste my time reading it.”

“I would say the ceasefire is on massive life support, where the doctor walks in and says, ‘Sir, your loved one has approximately a 1% chance of living,’” he added.

“It was just unacceptable,” Trump said when asked about the weekend proposal. “I have the best plan ever. And Iran has been defeated militarily. Totally.”

Trump said his position remains unchanged: “Iran can not have a nuclear weapon. They’re very dangerous. They’re very volatile.”

Some Iranian officials want a deal, but hard-liners are blocking an agreement, according to Trump.

“In Iran, they have the moderates – they’re dying to make a deal – and then you have the lunatics,” Trump said. “And I guess they’re a little bit afraid of the lunatics.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is hammering President Donald Trump over surging gas prices tied to the war with Iran, arguing voter frustration could help Democrats win back the House in November. 

But four years ago, he urged Republicans not to “play politics” with record prices at the pump under former President Joe Biden.

“The average gas price is now $4.55 per gallon,” Jeffries wrote on social media Friday. “Is this what the golden age in America looks like?”

As the conflict drags on, disruptions to oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz have pushed fuel prices higher. The Trump administration’s effort to end the war appears to be stalling, even as a month-old ceasefire with Iran has largely held.

GAS SURGE TIED TO IRAN CONFLICT HITS SWING STATES, TESTING TRUMP’S LOW-PRICE PITCH

Jeffries’ attack on gas prices is part of Democrats’ strategy to focus on affordability, as the party looks to unseat a swath of vulnerable Republicans in battleground House districts this year. 

Gas prices have risen on average by more than $1.50 — a roughly 50% increase — since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, according to AAA.

A recent Fox News Poll found that nearly 60% of voters said gas prices were a “major problem” for their household. Another 29% of respondents said price increases at the pump were a “minor problem.”

Voter concern about persistent inflation has contributed to Democrats holding an eight-point lead over Republicans on the issue, according to the April Fox News survey. Nearly three-quarters of voters believe the U.S. economy is getting worse, matching a record high that Fox News also observed under Biden in April 2023.

“The problem with this reckless war of choice is life has gotten more expensive,” Jeffries told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in April.

But Jeffries struck a markedly different tone in March 2022, when gas prices surged following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Average gas prices ultimately rose to more than $5 per gallon in June of that year.

FROM BIDEN’S ‘WAR’ ON GAS PRICES TO ‘SMALL PRICE TO PAY’: GOP SHIFTS TONE AS IRAN CONFLICT HITS PUMPS

“It’s certainly my hope that my Republican colleagues won’t continue to play politics with an existential crisis for Ukraine, for Europe, for the West and for democracy because that is what is at stake right now,” Jeffries said during a March 2022 news conference, referring to a spike in gas prices. “It may be some sacrifice that is required across the world.”

“Certainly, we are seeing incredible sacrifice by the Ukrainian people,” he went on.

Asked by a reporter whether the Biden administration should ask Americans to temporarily work from home to ease the gas crisis, Jeffries replied, “Everything should be on the table” and suggested the private sector consider the idea.

“To the extent that corporate America, American businesses, as was the case during World War II, see themselves as part of the effort to ease the sacrifices that may be required here, I think that would be a positive development for the country,” he said. 

Fox News Digital reached out to a Jeffries spokesperson before publication.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright has voiced optimism that gas prices will fall following the end of hostilities with Iran while conceding that Americans are experiencing “discomfort” in the short term.

“I’m avoiding price predictions,” Wright told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “Gasoline and diesel prices are up, and they’ll remain up while this conflict is in place, and then they will come back down. And ultimately they’ll come back down lower than they were before.” 

“Ending Iran’s nuclear program, that is massively positive for the flow of energy,” Wright said. “Meaning more energy will flow in the future, meaning lower energy prices for Americans and the rest of the world.”

The partisan battle over midterm elections is heating up in Washington, D.C., with accusations flying that both sides are trying to rig the outcome in November. 

Republicans are trying to hold on to their majority in both chambers, while Democrats are trying to pounce on sluggish legislating, infighting and rising costs in their quest to take over the House, Senate or both. 

And President Donald Trump is already accusing Democrats of election interference months before Election Day. 

SCHUMER, DEMS LAUNCH ‘FREE AND FAIR’ ELECTIONS TASK FORCE AS TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT STUMBLES

“The Democrats are totally unhinged, and we will not allow them to threaten the integrity of our Elections,” Trump said on Truth Social.  

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Democrats recently launched a “free and fair elections task force” that would recruit the likes of former Attorney General Eric Holder and Marc Elias, who Trump charged was “a terrible lawyer with a horrible track record.” 

“Palestinian Chuck Schumer is hiring Eric Holder, famous for handing guns to Mexican cartels under the Barack Hussein Obama administration, as part of a Democrat-led ‘Election Integrity Group’ that will no doubt try to suppress Republican voters, and interfere in our Elections,” Trump said on Truth Social.

Schumer and Senate Democrats debuted the elections task force as Republicans struggle to move forward on voter ID and citizenship verification legislation, and on the heels of the Supreme Court’s redistricting decision that is expected to further crank up the redistricting arms race across the country.

REPUBLICANS FAIL TO ATTACH SAVE AMERICA ACT TO PARTY-LINE FUNDING PACKAGE

“Donald Trump and the Republicans realize that if the election were held fairly, that the likelihood is that they would lose, and we would win, that we would take back the House, take back the Senate,” Schumer said.

“So they are doing all kinds of nefarious things, some of them legal, some of them not so legal, to try and overturn a fair result in an election,” he continued.

Schumer described the task force’s mission as seeking out “election threats,” including actions at the administrative level by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), attacks on the First Amendment, foreign threats and militarization of law enforcement at the polls.

Trump countered that in the 2024 election cycle, Republicans mounted an “Election Integrity Army in every single State to preserve the sanctity of each legal vote.”

“We will be doing the same again in 2026, but it will be much bigger and stronger,” Trump said. “All Americans should have their voices be heard by casting a vote. Be assured this Election will be fair!”

Its inception is in response to what Democrats say is a “comprehensive effort” by Trump and his administration to undermine the upcoming election, particularly through efforts to pass the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act.

TWO DOZEN HOUSE REPUBLICANS GO TO WAR WITH SENATE GOP OVER SAVE AMERICA ACT

Trump has strongly pushed Republicans to pass the SAVE America Act, which would create federal voter ID laws, require proof of citizenship to register to vote and share information on voter rolls with DHS. Democrats say the legislation would disenfranchise millions of Americans.

But Republicans aren’t unified behind the legislation. The SAVE America Act, or a version of it pushed by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., failed last month when four Republicans joined Democrats to kill it.

He has also called on Republicans to nationalize elections, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin didn’t rule out sending federal immigration agents to polling places in the fall during his confirmation hearing earlier this year.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt earlier this year pushed back against whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would head to the polls come November, and said “that’s not something I’ve ever heard the president consider.” 

“I haven’t heard the president discuss any formal plans to put ICE outside of polling locations,” Leavitt said. 

It’s part of what Democrats charge is a concerted effort to tip the scales in the upcoming elections.

“Donald Trump doesn’t think he did too much in 2020 to steal the election,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said. “He thinks he did too little, and so that’s why you are seeing, already, a comprehensive effort to try to rig and steal the fall election.”

Alabama’s Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed legislation Friday that would demand the governor call special primary elections for impacted U.S. House districts if the Supreme Court allows the state to utilize district lines its legislature approved in 2023 but has been blocked from using.

The governor also signed similar legislation pertaining to state Senate districts approved in 2021.

“With this special session successfully behind us, Alabama now stands ready to quickly act, should the courts issue favorable rulings in our ongoing redistricting cases,” Ivey said in a statement. “I thank the Legislature for answering my call to address the issue in fast order. I am grateful to Speaker Ledbetter and Pro Tem Gudger for their strong leadership and focus this week. Alabama knows our state, our people and our districts best.”

GOP SPEAKER CLAPS BACK AFTER BOOKER STUMPS AGAINST BID TO ERADICATE RED STATE’S DEMOCRAT-HELD DISTRICTS

A federal court on Friday denied an emergency motion for a stay in the congressional redistricting case.

“Quite simply, we do not have the authority to issue an order that upends Alabama’s status quo, especially in the middle of an election, while our injunction establishing that status quo is well under review in the nation’s highest court,” the order declared.

SEN TOMMY TUBERVILLE, MORGAN MURPHY: REPUBLICANS MUST WIN THE MAP WAR ONCE AND FOR ALL

The state is pressing the U.S. Supreme Court to take action to allow it to utilize the 2023 congressional map.

“I will continue to fight for Alabama to be able to use the congressional map the people’s elected representatives enacted,” state Attorney General Steve Marshall said Friday.

TRUMP CRITICIZES 2 SUPREME COURT JUSTICES BY NAME OVER TARIFF RULING

“Alabama drew a map based on lawful policy goals, not race, and the Supreme Court’s recent ruling vindicates that approach. We were punished for doing the right thing, and we are asking the Court to correct that now,” the official noted.

Democratic Senate candidate and former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is being ripped as a “complete failure” after hundreds of inmates released under his administration as part of a COVID-era agreement were rearrested on new charges within two years.

This comes as Cooper is locked in a heated Senate race with Republican Michael Whatley that could help determine which party controls the chamber. A spokesperson for Cooper’s campaign dismissed the criticisms as “blatant lies from Republicans,” pointing to how the former governor fought the releases in court. The spokesperson also said thousands of prisoners were released during the first Trump administration due to COVID-19.

A Fox News Digital review of data from the North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission found that more than 560 inmates released during the Cooper administration went on to be arrested on charges of new offenses within two years of their release.

The agreement resulted in the release of 3,500 inmates over a 180-day period from February to August 2021. Among those released was Tyrell Brace, who was later charged with first-degree murder in the killing of young father Elante Thompson in Charlotte. Brace previously pleaded guilty to assault by strangulation and assault inflicting serious injury and also had felony larceny and breaking-and-entering convictions. North Carolina Department of Public Safety Adult Correction records indicate Brace was released months earlier than originally scheduled.

CHARLOTTE RAIL MURDER SUSPECT LINKED TO INMATE RELEASE APPROVED UNDER EX-DEM GOVERNOR, GOP ALLEGES

Another released inmate, Daron Owens, went on to be sentenced in federal court to 10 years in prison for possession of a firearm by a felon stemming from a drive-by shooting months after his release that left a victim with gunshot wounds. Owens was released a month early.

Cooper’s Senate opponent, Republican Michael Whatley, ripped into him, posting on X that “Roy Cooper was a complete failure at keeping our communities safe.”

“Victims’ families deserve answers,” he continued, adding, “Why did Roy Cooper allow these dangerous criminals back on our streets?”

The mass release stemmed from a 2020 lawsuit filed by the North Carolina NAACP, ACLU and other groups, which argued that crowded prison conditions during the pandemic put inmates at unconstitutional risk. The plaintiffs initially pushed for the release of thousands more inmates. But the state ultimately settled the case in early 2021, agreeing to reduce the prison population through expanded early releases, parole reviews and other measures, resulting in about 3,500 inmates being released.

The move has been criticized by Republicans as one of the largest mass prisoner releases in the country. At the time, Cooper’s administration emphasized that the releases would focus on non-violent offenders, though officials later acknowledged that individuals convicted of violent crimes were also included.

Court records show some inmates released during the period had extensive felony histories, including crimes involving assault, sexual offenses, kidnapping and offenses against children.

Data reviewed by Fox News Digital found that from a sample group of 1,180 prisoners, 48 percent, 566, were later arrested on charges of new offenses. From the sample group, 20 percent have been convicted.

Besides Brace and Owens, another individual released was Jimmie Speight, who was convicted of indecent liberty with a child and failure to register as a sex offender and was released just under nine months early. In 2023, he was sentenced to more than 32 years in prison for second-degree murder.

Another, Kyshuan Norrell, who was convicted of manslaughter, was also released and has since been sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder.

TRUMP SAYS DEMOCRATS HAVE ‘BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS’ AFTER DEADLY CHARLOTTE TRAIN STABBING

Whatley campaign spokesperson DJ Griffin drilled into the former governor over these releases, telling Fox News Digital that “Roy Cooper has blood on his hands.”

Griffin posited that Cooper’s “dangerous decision to release thousands of convicted felons during COVID has resulted in the deaths of 19 North Carolinians.”

“Now, victims’ families say he is solely to blame for these deaths. All while Cooper refuses to take any responsibility for his actions,” said Griffin.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) also piled on Cooper, calling the releases “INSANE,” in an X post, adding, “Roy Cooper must answer for this.”

Bernadette Breslin, a national press secretary for the NRSC, told Fox News Digital that the agreement amounted to the Democrat having “aided and abetted the release of thousands of violent criminals onto North Carolina’s streets,” adding, “Cooper’s soft-on-crime policies are too dangerous for North Carolina families.”

In response, a spokesperson for Cooper’s campaign dismissed the criticisms, telling Fox News Digital that “these blatant lies from Republicans have been fact-checked for months and found to be false.”

The spokesperson said that “after Roy fought against these releases in court, North Carolina law enforcement officials and parole officers looked to similar criteria President Trump used a year prior when his administration released thousands of federal prisoners due to COVID-19.”

CHARLOTTE TEEN ARRESTED 111 TIMES IN 2 YEARS STILL WALKING FREE IN SOFT-ON-CRIME BLUE CITY: POLICE

“Keeping the public safe is Roy Cooper’s top priority, which is why he refused to commute sentences when outside groups asked him to during the pandemic,” the spokesperson continued.

They added, “While Roy spent his career putting rapists and violent criminals behind bars, Michael Whatley spent his appointing a convicted child sex predator who served time in prison for multiple counts of felony child sex crimes to a powerful position within the North Carolina Republican Party.”

Harvey West Jr., a registered sex offender who served prison time for child sex crimes, later held leadership and committee roles within the North Carolina GOP during Whatley’s tenure as chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party. Whatley has said that West “was elected on his own,” according to the Washington Examiner.

This comes as North Carolina leaders have faced scrutiny for high-profile murders, such as the killing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska. Republicans have alleged that the man charged with Zarutska’s murder, Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr., may have been one of the inmates released under the COVID agreement. However, Cooper has denied this as a “lie.”

Brown had been arrested at least 14 times prior to the killing and previously served time in North Carolina prison after a 2015 armed robbery conviction. He was released from custody in September 2020.

Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price contributed to this report.

Conservative House Republicans are escalating a fight over government surveillance as Congress reopens debate this week on a controversial warrantless spying program.

Members of the House Freedom Caucus are pledging to hold firm on adding a permanent ban on central bank digital currency (CBDC) to any legislation that reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). But the proposal faces widespread opposition from Senate Democrats and is viewed as dead on arrival in the upper chamber.

The cross-chamber standoff threatens to complicate Congress’ ability to meet a mid-June deadline to renew the spy law, which the Trump administration argues is a critical national security tool. 

“If the Senate thinks they’re going to keep rolling over us, it’s just not going to happen,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said at a news conference in late April, referring to the Senate’s opposition to including a CBDC ban in a FISA renewal bill.

SPEAKER JOHNSON ONE STEP CLOSER TO RENEWING CONTROVERSIAL SPY PROGRAM AFTER CONSERVATIVES FALL IN LINE

Both chambers in April approved a 45-day FISA extension to allow for more time for negotiations. House GOP privacy hawks objected to the short-term measure, citing its omission of a CBDC ban. 

“CBDC can still make it across the finish line. Let’s just push on,” the Texas Republican added. “The Senate will respond to the people if they push hard enough. I’m positive on it.”

GOP privacy hawks argue a CBDC ban is a critical privacy guardrail against the Federal Reserve issuing a digital currency that could be used to surveil and potentially cut access to Americans’ financial transactions.

“They don’t want the government monitoring their bank accounts, telling them what they can buy, when they can buy it and when they’re not allowed to buy,” Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., said at a news conference, referring to his constituents’ concerns about a government-issued digital token.

The group has repeatedly sought to add a CBDC ban to various legislation over the past year, but has not yet been able to get a permanent ban on President Donald Trump’s desk.

During his confirmation hearing, Federal Reserve chair nominee Kevin Warsh said he would not issue a CBDC during his term, calling the proposal a “bad policy choice.”

HOUSE GOP SLAMMED BY CONSERVATIVES FOR JOINING DEMS ON CONTROVERSIAL ‘KILL SWITCH’ AMENDMENT

The push to ban CBDCs is part of a broader effort by conservative Republicans to ramp up their fight against government surveillance. 

“Americans don’t want Big Brother in their cars, their bank accounts, or their homes,” a spokesperson for the conservative House Freedom Caucus told Fox News Digital. “The gloves are coming off before FISA expires on June 12.”

Roy, the HFC’s policy chief, is pushing to repeal a Biden-era provision requiring a federal agency to draft a rule mandating impaired driver technology in new cars that could shut off vehicles if drunk driving is detected. The federal government has not yet moved forward with drafting the “kill switch” regulation.

“Do you really want to put that kind of data collection mandated inside every car? At what point is there just literally no privacy at all anywhere?” Roy said during a hearing in late April in support of adding a “kill switch” repeal amendment to FISA extension legislation.

GOP privacy hawks have also advocated for language that would add a judicial warrant requirement to the FISA renewal bill. While the law targets foreigners overseas using U.S. platforms, their communications with Americans can also be swept up and reviewed.

Privacy advocates in the Democratic Party have also long pushed for a warrant requirement to gather information on Americans.

The Trump administration initially sought a clean 18-month extension of the spy law, but quickly ran into problems with a mix of conservative and progressive privacy hawks.

“We’re not going to pass something that’s a long-term, clean reauthorization,” Roy said. “I think that’s been taken off the table. We’ve demonstrated that, and we’re going to get reforms.”

President Donald Trump issued a lengthy lament for two of his Supreme Court justices’ $159 billion ruling against tariffs and likely “ruling against us on Birthright Citizenship” and showing “so little respect to our country, and its people.”

“I don’t want loyalty, but I do want and expect it for our Country,” Trump’s 545-word Truth Social post read Sunday night, showing his disappointment in Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett. “Yes, I have another way of doing Tariffs, but it is far slower, and more laborious than what was just determined, in a close decision, to be ‘illegal’ or ‘unconstitutional,’ with three powerful, and highly accurate, dissents! Well, maybe Neil, and Amy, just had a really bad day, but our Country can only handle so many decisions of that magnitude before it breaks down, and cracks!!!”

“Sometimes decisions have to be allowed to use Good, Strong, Common Sense as a guide.”

TRUMP SAYS SUPREME COURT RULING AGAINST BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP ORDER WOULD BENEFIT CHINA

“A negative ruling on Birthright Citizenship, on top of the recent Supreme Court Tariff catastrophe, is not Economically sustainable for the United States of America!”

The birthright citizenship ruling remains pending before the Supreme Court, with a decision expected before the end of June or in early July. Trump has sought to end the practice of “birth tourism,” where foreign nationals have put their family’s stake in automatic U.S. citizenship of their children born while in the U.S.

“I choose people to help our Country, not to hurt it,” Trump’s post read, “and now, based on what I witnessed recently by being the first President in History to attend a Supreme Court session (Which fact was not even recognized or acknowledged, out of respect for the position of President, by the Court — Something which did not go unnoticed by the Fake News Media!), they will be ruling against us on Birthright Citizenship, making us the only Country in the World that practices this unsustainable, unsafe, and incredibly costly DISASTER.”

JUSTICE JOHN ROBERTS: WE’RE NOT ‘POLITICAL ACTORS,’ NOT AN ‘ACCURATE UNDERSTANDING’ OF US

The Supreme Court delivered a 6-3 decision against Trump’s International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) use of tariffs for national security and trade in late February. Gorsuch, Barrett and Chief Justice John Roberts ruled with liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Only Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh dissented against the constitutionality of using IEEPA to levy tariffs on foreign goods and countries amid multiple wars.

“I ‘Love’ Justice Neil Gorsuch! He’s a really smart and good man, but he voted against me, and our Country, on Tariffs, a devastating move,” Trump’s post began. “How do I reconcile this? So bad, and hurtful to our Country. I have, likewise, always liked and respected Amy Coney Barrett, but the same thing with her.

SUPREME COURT KILLS TRUMP’S ‘LIBERATION DAY’ TARIFFS — BUT 4 OTHER LAWS COULD RESURRECT THEM

“They were appointed by me, and yet have hurt our Country so badly! I do not believe they meant to do so, but their decision on Tariffs cost the United States 159 Billion Dollars that we have to pay back to enemies, and people, companies, and Countries, that have been ripping us off for years. It’s hardly believable!”

Trump added he was fine with the ruling if they had just not left the door open for companies to come back to ask for the tariffs money back, something the ruling did not expressly allow, but ultimately has forced the Trump administration to respond to.

“They could have solved that situation with a ‘tiny’ sentence, ‘Any money paid by others to the United States does not have to be paid back,’” Trump wrote. “Why wouldn’t they have done so?

CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTS WARNS AGAINST PERSONAL ATTACKS ON JUDGES AS ‘DANGEROUS’ AFTER TRUMP COURT TIRADE

“With certain Republican Nominated Justices that we have on the Supreme Court, the Democrats don’t really need to ‘PACK THE COURT‘ any longer. In fact, I should be the one wanting to PACK THE COURT!”

Trump suggested some of the conservative justices should follow the liberal justices’ political interpretations of the law on behalf of the people and ideology they represent.

“I’m working so hard to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, and then people that I appointed have shown so little respect to our Country, and its people,” he continued. “What is the reason for this? They have to do the right thing, but it’s really OK for them to be loyal to the person that appointed them to ‘almost’ the highest position in the land, that is, a Justice of the United States Supreme Court.”

“Democrat Justices always remain true to the people that honored them for that very special Nomination. They don’t waver, no matter how good or bad a case may be, but Republican Justices often go out of their way to oppose me, because they want to show how ‘independent’ or, ‘above it all,’ they are.”