Adam Herbets, FOX 13 🏔️ Profile picture
➤Investigative Reporter, @FOX13 ➤First Amendment is first for a reason ➤Edward R. Murrow Award winner ➤12x Emmy Award winner ➤2x SPJ Best TV Reporter in Utah

Sep 14, 2022, 18 tweets

This article by @BrandyZadrozny identifies Utah County Attorney David Leavitt @Leavitt_RJI as a victim of “baseless” accusations.

Yes, the article mentions me.

🧵 I’ll be posting a few of my thoughts in this thread below.

nbcnews.com/tech/internet/…

1 - David Leavitt is innocent until proven guilty. He is also one of the suspects in a still-active ritualistic child sex abuse case.

Nobody wrote an article about his involvement until he held a press conference announcing himself as a suspect.

2 - The article headline states the accusations are “fueled by QAnon believers and GOP influencers.”

I don’t see anywhere in this article that identifying an alleged victim or accuser matching this description.

3 - The 151-page report referenced in this article is one of many public records describing ritualistic sex abuse.

The female victim has multiple siblings who gave similar statements. They authored reports and performed interviews with police long before QAnon existed.

4 - During his press conference, David Leavitt demonstrated he has intimate knowledge of another suspect in this case. He has previously identified the woman as an honest victim of ritualistic sex abuse. Now he refers to her as “hopelessly mentally ill.”

5 - The still-active investigation is briefly mentioned within the article, paragraph 13.

Again, each of the individuals named in these reports are innocent until proven guilty. But investigators from multiple agencies are disgusted to see their work labeled as “baseless.”

6 - The article makes no mention of how David Leavitt is also under investigation by Homeland Security for human trafficking.

In this video, Leavitt describes a “strategy” to obtain a Native American baby. He offers Ukrainian buffalo.

Full video:
fox13now.com/news/fox-13-in…

7 - The author’s news organization has possession of the video.

For unknown reasons, @NBCNews has never published the video or acknowledged existence of the human trafficking investigation tied to that video.

8 - The article says Leavitt, a Republican, has a “liberal style of prosecution” and blames “partisan media and conservative politicians” for amplifying claims against him.

Again, nobody published an article about Leavitt’s involvement until he announced himself as a suspect.

9 - Then the article labels me as a “Fox News reporter.”

I have never worked for @FoxNews. I work for a local news station with no right or left-leaning bias. KSTU is an affiliate owned by EW Scripps. Affiliate means we only have local FOX programming, like the Simpsons and NFL.

10 - Investigators with multiple agencies tied to the active ritualistic sex abuse case say, in broad terms, @BrandyZadrozny makes good points about the pervasiveness of conspiracy theories like QAnon.

Yes, not all tips are credible. In this case, one suspect already confessed.

11 - “I am sorry for raping you.”

This is the same suspect mentioned by David Leavitt in his press conference.

Leavitt also testified during this man’s divorce proceedings. The content of that testimony is sealed.

12 - @UCSO has received 130+ tips since announcing its investigation into ritualistic child sex abuse. Even after Leavitt named himself as a suspect, UCSO refuses to confirm or deny names.

They say the majority of the 130 tips ARE credible. Some were forwarded to other agencies.

13 - David Leavitt, through his spokesperson, agreed to an interview to discuss the ongoing Homeland Security investigation into how he obtained a baby from the Northern Cheyenne Tribe in Montana. But not until after the election.

We're still waiting. It's been nearly 3 months.

14 - In 2020, Leavitt himself was asked whether he believed ritualistic sexual abuse exists.

He said yes, it certainly exists. In one example he gave, he (unknowingly?) mentioned his accuser(s) and another known suspect in the case.

15 - At the time of that 2020 interview, David Leavitt had already been under investigation by Homeland Security for several years. The video is evidence in that case.

16 - I appreciate all the questions and comments this thread has received. I believe journalism is based on facts, not commentary. I'll answer as many questions as possible, but I won't be answering questions asking for my opinion.

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