For additional articles covering O.U.R., please go to ACJ Investigates: Derailed: Operation Underground Railroad

MAGA republicans and QAnon adherents are beating their chests and “taking it to the libs” with their new Christian porn flick, Sound of Freedom. Little do they know, it was all a hoax. For nearly a decade, Tim Ballard peddled his “Pedro, his Sister and the Necklace” story (spun entirely out of whole cloth from the arrest of Earl Venton Buchanan) as divine inspiration that led to the formation of Operation Underground Railroad. The only problem is, it… like all things Tim Ballard- just simply wasn’t true.

Tim Ballard is riding high, but little does he know that this hoax, these lies he told is far worse than what James Frey did with his book A Million Little Pieces. In fact, Frey can probably rest easier tonight as he will no longer be remembered as the world’s most prolific liar. The big difference is, Frey betrayed the trust of those he inspired, who trusted him and thought they found someone who understood their struggle. What Tim has done- is nothing short of irreparable damage to the public’s perception of sex trafficking and has given additional cover to pedophiles and actual sex traffickers. In addition, he gave his base enough rope to embarrass themselves. Sound of Freedom is just the start. It’s clear that Ballard is a pathological liar and con-man who undoubtedly lied about the origins of Operation Underground Railroad from the outset.

Tim Ballard has a secret to tell. Actually, he has a lot of secrets.

When Lynn Packer had exposed Coco Berthmann and Elizabeth Frazier as bogus victims of human trafficking, both of us were hesitant to publish. On one hand, we had the #metoo movement that had taken a “believe all victims” or nothing approach. The blowback could have been significant. We also knew we’d be under fire by the right-wing, especially MAGA republicans over Berthmann and Frazier, who would accuse us of trying to “cover for pedophiles”.

Prior to publication, I consulted with actual victims of human trafficking who we’ve been working with- including three women I grew up with, in an effort to bring real human trafficking stories to the forefront. All of them insisted, the truth had to be told. Misinformation and fantasy human trafficking tales told to scare people has done irreparable damage. It has no place in serious discussion about human trafficking.

“No information is better than misinformation”, a former detective with the Detroit Metropolitan Police Department Human Trafficking Task Force told us, and who will be featured in an upcoming article.

Despite the initial blowback and thousands of death threats, as people began to investigate- letters of apology poured in, especially after a report mentioning ACJ on KSL and another news program announcing Berthmann’s arrest.

Misinformation, human trafficking fantasy stories such as Sound of Freedom not only draw people’s attention away from real human trafficking and child sex abuse but provides cover for actual traffickers and pedophiles.

O.U.R. Quietly Admits Tim Ballard’s Origin Story is a Lie

On June 27,2023, exactly a week before the nationwide premiere of Sound of Freedom, Operation Underground Railroad published Sound of Freedom: Based on A True Story (Except for the Parts That Aren’t) which tries to retcon Tim’s O.U.R. Origin Story that he has peddled for years.

It states:

Additionally, although Teddy’s sister is a person in real life, the story of Tim refusing to give up the search to find “the one,” as depicted in the film, is based on the true story of O.U.R.’s continual search for Gardy.

The children portrayed in the movie were actual survivors of trafficking. TRUE 

The film depicts many different children who are shown as victims of sex trafficking. All those characters represent real people O.U.R. has rescued at one point or another. The story of the little boy, known in the movie as “Teddy,” is particularly special.  

In the film, after Tim rescues Teddy, the boy gifts him a dog-tag type necklace with “Timoteo” written on it. True to the real story, the little boy’s sister had given her brother this necklace in the movie before they were separated. To them it symbolized the hope of rescue.  

In real life, this happened while Tim was still an HSI Special Agent, and the little boy really did gift that necklace to Tim. On it, it has a scripture reference from 1 Timothy 6:11 and the words “Man of God” inscribed on it. It wasn’t until Tim took it home to show to his family that his son pointed out his name was on it. 

“To me, call it luck, chance, coincidence, God, whatever you want to call it, it was a message,” Tim said. “That necklace symbolized a calling now to me. It meant so much and I decided, then and there, that this is it, this is what I’m called to do, this is what I’ll do for the rest of my life.” 

Additionally, although Teddy’s sister is a person in real life, the story of Tim refusing to give up the search to find “the one,” as depicted in the film, is based on the true story of O.U.R.’s continual search for Gardy.  

This is huge. O.U.R. admits that Tim Ballard made up the kidnappings and lied about the necklace story and Columbian rescue.

Does the public get an apology? Do trafficking victims? Will some donors get a refund if they feel they were misled by Operation Underground Railroad and its founder Tim Ballard?

While it was just to serve as legal cover, it ultimately admits that Ballard’s story about the founding of O.U.R. was a lie from the outset. The organization has been built on a lie. A lie he has peddled day in and day out for ten years. This is a house build on sand (for you biblical types). A proverbial house of cards. You can’t build anything of value or substance on a lie.

One thing is for certain. A man with no credibility or integrity- has no business running a non-profit and working with vulnerable children who may have been sexually abused.

Working with exploited and abused children has no place for on the job training. The notion that you can lie your way into the industry, claim for ten years that O.U.R. specializes in “rescuing kidnapped children from trafficking” and now say “most trafficking happens through a manipulative grooming process. “

Don’t believe me? Just look at ten years of interviews with Ballard- kidnapped children was his specialty.

In fact, for years organizations that actually can substanciate their claims of caring for trafficking victims have tried to get Operation Underground Railroad to tell their QAnon adherants that human trafficking almost always “happens through a manipulative grooming process”.

You wait a week before you release a film about kidnapped children (who were not really kidnapped as shown through court records) and readily admit “most trafficking happens through a manipulative grooming process.”

Jim Caviezel would go on to paint this harrow tale on right-wing talk shows and podcasts, [paraphrasing] “imagine you’re at a picnic and one of these traffickers grab your kids”

Today O.U.R. finally realizes that kidnapping is exceptionally rare [if ever] when it comes to trafficking. after years of painting graphic pictures of Mexican men (presumably illegal immigrants) snatching suburban white girls… Except O.U.R. works overseas, primarily in Haiti, the most corrupt regime on the planet.

Sorry folks, I don’t engage in conspiracy theories. We’ve covered Ballard and Haiti extensively in other articles and videos.

It’s alarming that there are folks saying “so what? The awareness is all that matters”

Right. Just as an arsonist’s true intent is to warn us about the dangers of fire.

For a political party and ideology that embraces slippery slope fallacies like they’re going out of style, this one should catch on. Something tells me it won’t, as least not this time.

Last Minute Changes to the Film: Likely an Attempt to Minimize Legal Exposure

Lynn Packer will go in depth in an upcoming report on the days leading up to Sound of Freedom’s premiere, as he works as a legal consultant.

Operation Underground Railroad, Alessandra Serano and Matt Osborne spent the last week attempting to minimize O.U.R.’s legal exposure, and this was extremely personal for Serano because she was the Assistant U.S. Attorney that prosecuted the Earl Buchanan case. She knew Sound of Freedom was pure fabrication, a lie Ballard told to anyone who would listen for ten years. Ultimately, Serano knew it defamed Earl Venton Buchanan, despite the fact that he is a pedophile- it painted him as a kidnapping child sex trafficker.

Despite this unique problem, Tim Ballard and Jim Caviezel would not quit running their mouths.

So, Matt Osborne would be the first O.U.R. executive to make the rounds stressing to everyone, “this is a fictional story” and made it clear that this was “not an O.U.R. film”.

Then on June 27, 2023, Operation Underground Railroad released a disclaimer that admitted Ballard lied about O.U.R.’s Origin story.

Front and center was the fact that Serano knew the Earl Buchanan story was pure fiction. Still the film premiered at multiple far right and religious conventions, including one in Las Vegas last year.

As the clock ticked down to the release of Sound of Freedom, Lynn Packer and I hammered away at Operation Underground Railroad executives Tim Ballard, Jessica Mass, Emily Evans and the organization’s legal executive, Alessandra Serano.

At the center of our attempts to contact them, was the claim that the film was based on a true story. It was not. It wasn’t the film’s claim we were concerned with. The plot of Sound of Freedom, is basically Tim Ballard’s “Pedro” story, which is the O.U.R. Origin Story about the arrest of a man named Earl Venton Buchanan back in 2006. The problem is, Tim Ballard’s O.U.R. Origin Story is completely made up. Lynn Packer had received detailed reports from viewers of the film last year including one from Trump voter and conservative republican, J..J. Brown (pictured left) which he covered in explicit detail in his report that first exposed Tim Ballard’s O.U.R. Origin Myth last year.

That said, Sound of Freedom had premiered in Las Vegas at private showing last year. I managed to watch about 15 minutes of the film as someone in attendance had filmed parts of Sound of Freedom as it played. In the film, Gary Basaraba plays Earl Buchanan who is a notorious child trafficker that kidnapped a young boy when he was an infant and had been stopped by Tim Ballard and Border Patrol agents after he attempted to pass off a fake ID of the boy to a Border Patrol Agent at the Calexico Port of Entry. While the film footage was shaky at times (he was trying to avoid getting caught filming the movie), it was clear to me that the ID did not look like the boy he is supposedly smuggling back into the United States.

In fact, Gary Basaraba’s Wikipedia page still credits him as Earl Buchanan-

Not only did they change Gary Basaraba’s character’s name to a new name, but they cut out Steven Cass AKA Batman entirely. They renamed the character to Vampiro and reduced his screen time significantly from the original film.

In an email exchange with Steven Cass AKA Batman, he claimed to have cut ties with Ballard because he [Ballard] sought the fortune and fame side of things. Unlike Ballard, Cass has not received a salary in 16 years nor has he dipped his hand in the pot when doing his rescue work. He did not try and get on TV or make himself known. Why? Well, because common sense says he’s doing undercover work and if criminals recognize you, they’ll kill you. Big difference is, Ballard had amassed $100 million, Cass was often broke.

Cass eventually carbon copied one of his responses to Ballard (after already trashing him in prior emails) and then suddenly ceased communication after one last email stroking Ballard’s ego.

Perhaps Ballard made a promise or some type of agreement with Cass?

Then there was another fall out between the two. Cass’s character was cut from the Sound of Freedom movie and renamed to Vampiro.

Operation Underground Railroad has since announced that they have a special documentary about Steven Cass AKA Batman coming soon. It appears Steven Cass may be selling out or cashing in-something he vowed to never do. I don’t blame him if he does. Cass has far less of a footprint than Ballard (and a fraction of the money, less than a fraction of a percent) and he can produce receipts backing up some of his claims. There is also other materials, independent reports that can back up his [Cass’s] claims.

Something Ballard has failed to produce in ten years. In fact, there is evidence to the contrary.

Regardless, Lynn Packer did a report on Steven Cass, AKA Batman almost two years ago.

Interview with one of Buchanan’s Sons

Lynn Packer and I interviewed Buchanan’s son, who also was a victim of Buchanan. He had not spoke to his father in years. Then he made it very clear, his father Earl Buchanan was a sick monster and piece of shit. A scumbag. He went on to elaborate that his father was also emotionally and physically abusive to his own children, however, Earl Buchanan was extremely nice to other neighborhood kids. He would buy them gifts and candy. This would have an affect on him for the rest of his life, as anyone would imagine. He explained to Lynn and I that he would describe himself as a conservative republican, but he does know that his party has a lot of crazies obsessed with pedophiles, both real and imagined.

Both he and his wife feared some type of vigilante attack and backlash from the film using Buchanan and turning him into a kidnapping trafficker. He suffers everyday from the abuse he endured and now was feeling stressed out from this.

So I also contacted Ballard and O.U.R. attorney’s Adam Becker and Peter Schofield at Kirton McConkie. To see if they were going to address the proverbial elephant in the room. Why is Buchanan named when Alessandra Serano who is now O.U.R.’s attorney, knows Sound of Freedom is a lie? Again, she was the Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the case.

There was no response, as usual.

Marketing Blitz

In the weeks leading up to Sound of Freedom’s premiere, as Tim Ballard and Jim Caviezel spammed right-wing media pundits and Angel Studios started offering influencers $150 each time they plugged the film on social media with pre-written reviews. More importantly, they spammed their same right-wing donors to buy up tickets so “everyone can see this very important true story” and then those tickets were given away for free. So the film’s box office success wasn’t organic or some revolt of Disney because it went woke, but rather it was almost completely driven on the backs of donors once again.

UPDATE (7/9/2023): Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad may have opened themselves up to legal exposure with their false claim that “Disney had shelved” Sound of Freedom

Just weeks ago, Ballard condemned Hollywood, lashed out and said he “didn’t trust them (Hollywood) they take “too many creative liberties” and went on to claim that this story is too important to corrupt. Which is odd, because Ballard always wanted to be an action star and his first iteration of O.U.R. was a reality TV show, where commandos and former Navy SEALs swoop in which machine guns and rescue kids in foreign nations.

Just as Sound of Freedom premiered in theaters nationwide, the hero of the story Tim Ballard would bless the good folks tuning into the Kyle Thompson Podcast with his presence.

Kyle Thompson gets wide eyed making it clear to his audience and Ballard that he’s a smart guy. There is no doubt his audience is competent. Now I hate to interrupt, but I must preface- a common accusation by those especially on the right is that liberals or so-called left just don’t want to take this film seriously. QAnon and Trumpists continue to peddle that “this was the most important film ever made!” Keep that in mind as we move along here.

So, Kyle Thompson stresses the importance of this film. In fact, he’s nearly groveling (or was it scripted?) and Ballard’s face melts into his sad, pleading face with his hands are in front of him. Tim Ballard is a method actor after all. He’s been preparing for this role since he was a child.

Thompson is rambling along about true stories and finally says to Tim Ballard, “Based on a true story and if you watch any film for any length of time that were based… means it could be very loosely based on a true story… Just how much of the storyline is legit? How much of it is like Hollywood?”

Tim Ballard looks Kyle Thompson dead in his eyes and does what he does best… lies. “Now…In order to protect identities they did merge two stories together…I feel like 85% is extremely accurate”.

Here is the interview:

According to Ballard, they had to “merge two stories to protect the identities of the children”.

That is Tim Ballard’s version of “it’s classified” used by frauds and charlatans pretending to be Navy SEALs.

Also, it is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.

Those two stories are the only stories Ballard has rambled on about for a decade. “Pedro” (which is the Earl Buchanan case and he tells you to go look the case up and it has the victims name in the court record) and Mardy Gardy.

So who is he protecting? Who Earl Buchanan? Or is he protecting them from possible legal exposure?

Stolen Valor: The True Story of Earl Buchanan’s arrest

For nearly ten years, Tim Ballard has told the story of “Pedro and the necklace” also known as, the O.U.R. Origin Story or Genesis (which is the arrest of Earl Buchanan) to just about anyone who would listen. As stated earlier, Operation Underground Railroad now quietly admits that their President and Founder Tim Ballard’s O.U.R. was actually lying about it.

In July of 2020, Tim Ballard tells Lewis Howes that he rescued the boy from a notorious trafficker named Earl Buchanan who had kidnapped the boy from Mexico, “when he was an infant” and separated him from his sister. He claims his sister was given to a drug lord and he had to rescue her only after he had promised the boy he would, when the boy commissioned him with a necklace the sister had given the boy before they were separated.

Catch all that? So Buchanan kidnaps the boy from Mexico when he was an infant. Except the sister of the boy had given him a necklace to remind them that they will be together?

Wait, is he actually trying to pass off Star Wars Luke and Leia or something? Was this the force or something?

Normally I wouldn’t provide so much commentary, but the lie is just so ridiculous from the outset and the interviewer has his head in his ass (sorry for my language), I would have asked Tim, “how fucking stupid do you think this audience is?”

If Ballard wanted to do a film about real trafficking, he should have told the truth. Border Patrol agents did their job per policy and procedure. End of story.

Don’t believe me or think it’s some liberal effort to protect pedophiles? Listen to Tim tell just one version of the story, (I have several others)-

Sorry folks. Bogus human trafficking stories have no place in serious discussion. That’s why nobody takes it serious. It’s just a movie. Sorry. You want a real human trafficking case to talk about? Send me an email!

Conservative commentator Glenn Beck named the boy “Pedro” back in 2014 when he first peddled Tim Ballard’s O.U.R. Genesis Story for donations .

According to Ballard, “Pedro”, was “kidnapped as an infant” by “a guy named Earl Buchanan”, who was “an American man kidnapping children in Mexico and smuggling them into the United States”. Ballard shoots an honest to god look at Howes and he tells listeners that “they can Google it and learn all about the case”.

So we did. Unlike MAGA republicans and Evangelists.

He proceeds to say that Buchanan had a compound in San Bernardino where “he was taking the kids and filming them… keeping (the photos and videos) for himself, giving them away”

In less than 32 seconds, Ballard tells not one or two, not three, but five major lies. Not mistakes or mix-ups, bad dates or times or cities, but five major lies to remain consistent with the MAGA right-wing, Evangelical understanding of “human trafficking” in an effort to defraud them.

Ballard: The boy was was kidnapped from Mexico as an infant.

FACT: The boy’s grandmother who was raising him in Banning, California, had known Earl Venton Buchanan almost his whole life- since he (Buchanan) was a child. Buchanan would often take the boy to Mexico to visit relatives, including the boy’s mother, who Buchanan was friend’s with.

This perpetuates the myth that kidnapping is major element of human trafficking. In fact, there are few cases where this has occurred. The few that do exist it wasn’t snatch and grab, it was Romeo’s wooing women into trafficking. Usually getting hooked on drugs and the promise of romance.

(see Border Patrol agents Ruiza and Apolinar’s reports, as well as the Statement of Facts and Motion to Suppress below under Earl Buchanan Case Docs)

Ballard: Earl Buchanan was kidnapping children and trafficking them.

FACT: Earl Buchanan was millionaire who started as a plumber and then went into general contracting and invested in real estate. He was known to hire much of the Hispanic population and sometimes would hire illegal immigrants. This is very much a typical pedophile grooms families and victims case.

Ballard: The boy was smuggled into the United States

FACT: Again, the boy was not from Mexico nor was he smuggled into the United States, he was an American citizen. This is a common misconception with human trafficking as they toy with the right-wing belief that to combat human trafficking you need more border security. In reality, vast majority of human trafficking, almost 99% is perpetrated by family members or close friends of the family or intimate partner of the victim.

It would be more effective to attack family values than border security and immigration. It goes to show just how disconnected people are from the subject of human trafficking in general. Including Tim Ballard.

Ballard: Earl Buchanan was taking kidnapped children to a compound in San Bernardino

FACT: Earl Buchanan had a construction compound in Banning, California, which housed equipment and vehicles. It was accessible to his workers and family, so the notion that Buchanan was taking kidnapped children to a compound to house them and film them and have “thousands of pictures everywhere” is just not sustainable or possible. Yes, Buchanan used a certain room that had a camera to film these disgusting acts against children, but the notion that pictures and chains or this was some torture-sex dungeon is simply just to play up to Evangelists and engage in right-wing fantasy, so they will shell out cash.

Ballard then goes into very specific details about his interactions with this victim of trafficking. Which is troubling, because, it simply never happened. At the same time, he makes sure a key marketing gimmick of O.U.R.’s Origin Story- the necklace. Conservative commentator Glenn Beck and Tim Ballard had debuted a replica necklace that you could buy when they first started this grift back in 2014.

Ballard: He was a 5 year-old boy. I recognized him from the video. I was like oh my gosh, I never recognized one of the kids from the video. I started to have a physiological reaction. like I don’t know if I can handle this

FACT: Ballard had no idea what was going on. He was at his office 45 minutes away. In fact, Ballard would not even receive a phone call until after Buchanan was put in custody and the boy was isolated. Which this should be the end of this report, because court records, border patrol reports and now O.U.R. claims the the depiction in the film was entirely fiction.

Except Ballard doesn’t get off that easy. Lynn Packer and I have asked Tim Ballard for years about his “Pedro necklace story” which is demonstrably false.

Ballard: The boy “inherently” knew he [Tim Ballard] was a good guy (this plays a lot into Mormon mythology) so he runs to us and jumps in our… my arms

FACT: Tim Ballard wasn’t present. He was still forty-five minutes away at his office. Ballard was a Homeland Security Investigations Agent for Homeland Security, not a Border Patrol agent.

Ballard: He’s like holding me and shaking and I’m like oh my gosh, does he speak English? Does he speak Spanish? Does he speak both? I don’t know… and he spoke perfect English which was haunting to me because the only reason he did, is because is would be, as it turn out, he was taken as an infant… and he said to me like no five year-old should ever have to say to anybody, he said, “I don’t belong here”

The case was widely covered by the media (including Fox News)

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-jul-12-me-molest12-story.html

Border Stop Sparks Porn, Molestation Case – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)

Bloomington man sentenced to federal prison for making child pornography with local boy – Daily Bulletin

Despite dozens of newspapers, television stations and news outlets covering the story- at no point do they mention that the boy was separated from his sister. A missing persons report was not filed by Ballard nor was one ever issued. If a kidnapped child was just rescued and he said his sister is missing as well, and gives an agent a necklace, that could be evidence of another kidnapped child.

When Tim Ballard questioned Earl Buchanan over the video, he never asked about the sister of the boy that he[Ballard] has claimed for the past 10 years to have had to quit his job seven years later to rescue this girl. Not a single reports mentions a necklace given to an agent. There is no push to find a second child. When the boy is interviewed, the physician does not ask him about a necklace nor is the boy begging anyone to find his sister.

Because she was at home on the couch, until the Border Patrol agent called to speak with her grandmother.

Ballard really didn’t think people would look into his lies, or he is a pathological liar, which numerous former executives at O.U.R, friends and acquaintances have claimed over the years.

Ballard has a problem with the truth. People who have a problem with the truth, do not need to be around vulnerable children. Either Ballard is a con-man or he has a problem distinguishing fantasy from reality. Either way, he is unfit to serve and protect the most vulnerable of children.

People with integrity issues and who lies, probably shouldn’t be running a non-profit.

For those that have followed Lynn Packer and I’s reporting and Anna Merlan and Tim Marchman from Vice News, who did a phenomenal series on Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad, uncovered a case where a girl escaped from her trafficker(s) and went to the police. Operation Underground Railroad had nothing to with her rescue and in fact, was still in its formative stage.

The girl was named “Liliana” by Tim Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad. Ballard would perjure himself before congress, lie to the public and then proceeded to lie to President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka’s face.

Ballard claimed he rescued a girl who rescued herself, and over period of a few weeks had told different stories and gave different ages for Liliana. O.U.R. then marketed a Valentine’s Day card that looked as if it were designed by an 8 or 9 year-old child at best. In reality, by the time Ballard was running around claiming the big win with his Liliana tale, she was an adult. Then Ballard had the audacity to claim she designed a Valentine’s Day card to thank O.U.R. supporters.

There is nothing more disgusting and despicable than some man who is out here claiming to rescue a girl, who had to rescue herself from her traffickers in New York City and could not speak English.

This story, about a girl who rescued herself from traffickers, should have been a film. Self empowerment and determination. Overcoming her fears and risking her life to free herself from the depths of hell. That would have been not only a hell of a movie, but an actual story about human trafficking that empowers other women and victims of trafficking either now or possibly in the future. Not only was Liliana tricked and deceived and betrayed, violated repeatedly and exploited, but after she gets the courage to save herself, a disgusting opportunist comes along and exploits her again.

At this point, just this alone erodes Tim Ballard’s integrity and credibility. It also explains why Ballard may have repeatedly stood by men who have been repeatedly accused of sexual assaults, rape, child exploitation, assault, battery and domestic violence, yet is quick to accuse the media of “enabling pedophiles” simply for questioning his wild and spectacular claims. Which is a typical right-wing tactic when questioning the validity of outrage stories that ultimately prove to be false.

This clearly demonstrates Ballards cowardice and O.U.R.’s culture of fostering and protecting anyone affiliated with the organization who has been accused of sexual assault, abuse, misconduct and fraud.

Had they made the true story of a trafficking victim that rescued herself, MAGA Republicans would be calling it woke garbage being shoved down their proverbial throats.

Instead they want a story, that is completely made up, not just made up…. a lie. It’s not just made up and they said this is a true story, Tim Ballard has repeatedly told this story and it is just simply not true. Yet, republicans are hiding behind the ruse of “awareness” and has the audacity to say that anyone who questions the white savior, the great white hope, The Mormon (SoF is a typical Mormon story), that we are enabling pedophiles?

You’re living in a fantasy.

I simply don’t have the time to talk about fantasy human trafficking stories. As far as white savior stories, we’ve read thousands of them. Our history is littered with it. What is one more? We already already saw white savior with the human trafficking plotline with Taken and the last Rambo movie.

We already know this story- we know how it ends.

As far as discussing actual human trafficking, well it’s like teaching calculus to folks that don’t even understand pre-algebra. In a couple days they will be outraged about something else, something woke- another manufactured crisis blown out of proportion. They will have forgotten all about fantasy human trafficking and we will still be here discussing actual human trafficking and debunking all the little myths and misconceptions that come along every time fantasy human trafficking becomes a weekend outrage.

Unfortunately, Sound of Freedom has done irreparable damage. Combating human trafficking requires a bit more than chest beating, slogans and discussing a made up tale of white man’s burden at the dinner table. Your concern is noted, but the last thing “trafficking awareness” needs is another Hollywood tale, Taken a la Fargo, told in the style of the Cohen brothers. Trafficking awareness certainly doesn’t need all the innuendo, misinformation and praising a white savior who has done nothing productive. Everything else, all the virtue signaling and slogans, screaming at your so-called political rivals is just shameful.

It’s 2023, and you just became aware of human trafficking, yet, you still don’t know what it is.

Your concern is noted, but you are part of the problem. It’s disgusting.

Earl Buchanan Case Docs

Here are the two Border Patrol agents reports:

Agent Apolinar:

Agent Ruiz-

Court Records:

Motion to Suppress (Filed 11/16/2006):

Motion to Compel Discovery (Filed 04/09/07)

Resources and Further Reading:

O.U.R.’s Batman UnmaskedAmerican Crime Journal |For A Better Informed Public

Sound of Freedom: Based on A True Story (Except for the Parts That Aren’t) (ourrescue.org)

Sound Of Freedom | Operation Underground Railroad (ourrescue.org)

O.U.R.’s Origin MythAmerican Crime Journal |For A Better Informed Public

Gary Basaraba – Wikipedia

The Arrest of Earl Venton BuchananAmerican Crime Journal |For A Better Informed Public

Anti-Trafficking Group With Long History of False Claims Gets Its Hollywood Moment (vice.com)

Inside the Shadowy Anti–Sex Trafficking Group OUR (vice.com)

Exposed: The Coco Berthmann Child Sex Slave HoaxAmerican Crime Journal |For A Better Informed Public

Elizabeth Frazier: Another Sham Child Sex Trafficking VictimAmerican Crime Journal |For A Better Informed Public

A Million Little Pieces – Wikipedia

06-1612 – USA v. Buchanan – Content Details – (govinfo.gov)

Border Stop Sparks Porn, Molestation Case – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)

Bloomington man sentenced to federal prison for making child pornography with local boy – Daily Bulletin

Feds Uncover Child-Molesting Den After Border Arrest | Fox News