The Canon camera was manufactured in 2004 – but the creation date of the pictures allegedly taken by this camera is 2003.
American legal legend Alan Dershowitz alleges the FBI tampered with evidence to secure Keith Raniere’s conviction.
“What happens when the government doesn’t just bend the rules but breaks them entirely?” Dershowitz wrote in a recent op-ed in the Washington Times
“Just nine weeks before trial — and 11 months after the seizure of evidence — a Canon camera and an external hard drive were suddenly ‘accidentally discovered’ to contain evidence of alleged child pornography. This late ‘discovery’ not only added new charges but also pressured several co-defendants into pleading guilty.
“However, according to experts, the evidence wasn’t discovered; it was invented. Seven experts, including four former FBI forensic examiners, concluded in a joint report submitted to the court: ‘Photos were planted and staged … with timestamps and folder names manipulated, apparently to simulate a 2005 timeframe. This conclusion is critical because the government depended entirely on these photos’ timestamps and folder names being authentic to argue that 22 of the photos were … illegal, based on the subject’s age being fifteen in 2005. This tampering … involved the manipulation of hundreds of files and time stamps.'”
Eleven months after they seized the hard drive, the FBI found 22 illicit pictures of Camila on it.
The same hard drive was photographed twice by the FBI – once as evidence item 2 – the hard drive where the 22 photos were found or planted, and again as evidence item 37.
EX
Conviction and Sentencing
Keith Alan Raniere
On June 19, 2019, a federal jury convicted Raniere on multiple charges, including racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, forced labor conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit identity theft. Notably, the racketeering charges also included the last-minute addition of predicate acts of possession of child pornography and sexual exploitation of a minor, relating to a woman named Camila.
On October 27, 2020, Raniere was sentenced to 120 years in prison.
The government denied any claims of tampering, with FBI Senior Computer Scientist David Loveall stating that the evidence of tampering was explainable. However, the defense’s experts discovered inconsistencies in the metadata. For example, the Canon camera that was supposedly used to take the photos was manufactured in 2004, yet the metadata for the Camila files indicated dates from 2003.
The prosecutors asserted that the Western Digital hard drive contained 22 explicit images of Camila, but it was mislabeled in the FBI’s evidence logs. The hard drive was noted as “black,” while in FBI photographs, it appeared “silver/gray.”
Pre-filled evidence recovery logs indicate that the agents may have predetermined what they intended to seize before the raid commenced. The FBI prioritized the confiscation of the camera and hard drive, deliberately avoiding other rooms and items, suggesting they had prior knowledge of the location and significance of these devices.
The metadata in the photographs served as crucial forensic evidence linking Raniere to the alleged crimes involving an underage victim. Prosecutors highlighted the EXIF data in the images, arguing that it demonstrated Camila was 15 years old at the time. In contrast, defense experts claimed the timestamps had been modified to align with the government’s narrative.
Experts found manual alterations to folder names, timestamps, and metadata—consistent with tampering.
Someone forgot to remove the Adobe Photoshop filter on one file before planting the photos.
In other files, they forgot about daylight savings time when they changed the time stamp date.
On top of that, the FBI has lost the hard drive. The chain of custody for the hard drive abruptly ended months before Raniere’s trial. FBI protocol mandates every transfer and examination of evidence be documented.
Camera Card Chaos
On September 19, 2018, an individual within the FBI accessed the original camera card without using a write blocker—software which prevents modifications to digital evidence. Changes were made to the contents of the card, but the extent and nature of these changes remain unclear. Raniere’s defense team requested a forensic copy of the camera card; however, the prosecution denied the request.
FTK Report Discrepancies
FBI Forensic Examiner Stephen Flatley initially analyzed the CF card and discovered only four matching files on the hard drive. After Flatley was reportedly sent to Ghana, FBI Forensic Examiner Brian Booth conducted a second forensic examination, which went against FBI policy, and found 37 matching photo files. This was nearly ten times the amount of evidence linking the camera to the hard drive.
While some files were corrupted and could not be opened, thumbnail images of a brunette named Daniela Fernandez and a blonde named Angel Smith strangely swapped places between the hard drive and the camera card in the newly discovered files.
“EXIF data is hard to change” – Brian Booth, FBI forensic examiner.
Data Determined the Date
The case relied heavily on the reliability of the EXIF data, which was the only metadata supporting the claim that the photos were created in 2005, when Camila was 15 years old.
Why Was Flatley Removed from the Case?
Stephen Flatley
FBI Senior Forensic Examiner Stephen Flatley was initially assigned to the case but was removed near the end of the trial. Prosecutors informed Judge Nicholas Garaufis that he had to go to Ghana. However, FBI records indicated that Flatley was still in New York in June 2019, more than a month into the trial, raising questions about whether he was actually sent to Ghana or if this was simply a pretext to prevent him from testifying.
The case relied heavily on the reliability of the EXIF data, which was the only metadata supporting the claim that the photos were created in 2005, when Camila was 15 years old. The creation dates showed 2003.
Why Was Flatley Removed from the Case?
-Flatley was originally assigned to the case but was removed near the end of the trial. Prosecutors informed Judge Nicholas Garaufis that he had to go to Ghana. However, FBI records show that Flatley was still in New York in June 2019, which was more than a month into the trial. This raises questions about whether he was truly sent to Ghana or if this was merely a pretext to keep him from testifying.
FBI Examiner’s Testimony
During the trial, FBI Senior Forensic Examiner Brian Booth testified that EXIF data is challenging to alter and is designed to resist manipulation. He asserted that modifying EXIF data requires specialized software, which the average person typically does not possess.
Key Issues: Flatley vs. Booth on Metadata Reliability
Flatley testified in the case of U.S. v. John Galanis that the FBI does not depend on EXIF data to determine a file’s creation date because system clocks can be altered, and metadata can be manipulated using commonly available free software.
Dershowitz:
Dershowitz isn’t pulling any punches.
“What we seek at this time is an evidentiary hearing at which we can present our evidence, subject to cross-examination, so the judge and the public can determine, based on facts, whether our serious allegations are true. “There is no reason for the government to oppose such an inquiry, yet they did so from the beginning of the case and continue to do so now.
“The time has come, indeed it is long past, for the government to end the cover-up of what experienced experts regard as a major scandal.
“If they did nothing wrong, they should have nothing to hide. If they are refusing to let the truth come out, the public has the right to conclude that they do apparently have something to hide. The public has the right to know what they are afraid will come out at a hearing.
“Sunlight is a good disinfectant, and blocking the sun will make the infection — if there is one, as the experts have concluded — fester. So, it’s in the interest of all Americans for there to be a hearing on this important issue.”
Raniere’s Guilt Doesn’t Excuse FBI
Raniere is widely seen as a cult leader and abusive individual. Camila who did not testify during the trial, came to speak at Raniere’s sentencing. She said the photos were of her when she was 15, and Raniere took them. She received $500,000 in victim restitution for her statement.
But Dershowitz says that’s not the point. Camila did not testify at trial, although the prosecution could have forced her to testify. Since she was an unindicted coconspirator who allegedly committed the same crimes as other codefendants, she had ample reason to cooperate with the government narrative.
Even if the photos were authentic, but planted on the hard drive, or if the FBI changed the metadata to comport with photos taken earlier but not available to the FBI, the act disqualifies the evidence.
And even if Raniere is the most deplorable defendant, who if he is innocent of this offense certainly committed other offenses for which the government did not charge, it does not grant the FBI a license to plant or alter evidene.
Dershowitz said, “As a nation, we must separate personal opinions about individual defendants from the principles of justice. If the government can fabricate evidence against someone like Raniere, who will hold it accountable when it turns that power against the rest of us?”
