1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:05,080 Speaker 1: Something strange is going on. Who is killing Russian billionaires? 2 00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:08,640 Speaker 1: Another Russian oligarch has been found dead. Reports suggests that 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:12,080 Speaker 1: he hanged himself, fell out of a window, slashed his wrists, 4 00:00:12,360 --> 00:00:16,760 Speaker 1: was poisoned, murdered his whole family. Last year, more than 5 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: a dozen Russian oligarchs died in the space of nine months. 6 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:24,560 Speaker 1: Many of the deaths are suspicious with links to the Kremlin. 7 00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:30,160 Speaker 1: This is sad Oligach, an investigation into these recently dead 8 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:34,199 Speaker 1: Russian billionaires. It's created by me Jake Hanrahan and my 9 00:00:34,360 --> 00:00:39,280 Speaker 1: colleague Sergey Slipchenkov. Sad Oligach is a h eleven production 10 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:47,879 Speaker 1: for Kulso Media and iHeartRadio. As we spoke about in 11 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:51,519 Speaker 1: the previous episode, Dan Rappaport fell to his death from 12 00:00:51,560 --> 00:00:55,360 Speaker 1: the window of his luxury DC apartment on August fourteenth, 13 00:00:55,480 --> 00:00:59,480 Speaker 1: twenty twenty two, nine stories to the concrete. He was 14 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:02,680 Speaker 1: dead at this His wife said she doesn't think it 15 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:06,160 Speaker 1: was a suicide. He showed no signs of depression or panic, 16 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:08,800 Speaker 1: and he had business meetings lined up that week, as 17 00:01:08,840 --> 00:01:11,320 Speaker 1: well as a lunch date planned with her the following day. 18 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:16,679 Speaker 1: There is, however, the strange case of Rappaport's dog and 19 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:21,039 Speaker 1: an alleged suicide note attached to the dog's collar. Dan 20 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:25,400 Speaker 1: Rappaport owned a Ukraine rescue dog named Boy. According to 21 00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:29,120 Speaker 1: a Russian sauce which we'll talk about later, Rappaport sent 22 00:01:29,200 --> 00:01:32,039 Speaker 1: out Boy to the park before he plummeted to his death. 23 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:36,760 Speaker 1: Boy allegedly had a suicide note and cash attached to 24 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:40,199 Speaker 1: his collar, the idea being that whoever found the dog 25 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:43,920 Speaker 1: would find the note and for some reason, the cash. 26 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 1: This is completely bizarre. If you're going to take your 27 00:01:47,640 --> 00:01:50,720 Speaker 1: life via jumping from the window of your own apartment, 28 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:53,720 Speaker 1: why would you not just leave the suicide note on 29 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:56,560 Speaker 1: the side, put it on the kitchen counter, leave it 30 00:01:56,600 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 1: on the coffee table, literally, anything would be more reliable 31 00:02:00,440 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: then attaching it to your dog and letting him out 32 00:02:03,560 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 1: into the streets. And what kind of lunatic lets their 33 00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: dog loose into the city like that. Rappaport went to 34 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:13,640 Speaker 1: the effort of saving Boy, bringing him back to the 35 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:17,400 Speaker 1: US with him from Ukraine, which is a complicated process. 36 00:02:17,919 --> 00:02:20,200 Speaker 1: I find it hard to believe he'd then leave Boy 37 00:02:20,280 --> 00:02:22,560 Speaker 1: to the mercy of the streets where he could get 38 00:02:22,639 --> 00:02:25,639 Speaker 1: hit by a car stolen or put into the dog pound. 39 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:30,960 Speaker 1: This whole scenario makes no sense. It does start to 40 00:02:31,000 --> 00:02:34,239 Speaker 1: make sense though, when you consider the source, but we'll 41 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:42,000 Speaker 1: come back to that later. First, Sergei Jeff. In January 42 00:02:42,040 --> 00:02:47,680 Speaker 1: twenty seventeen, Russian businessman Sergei to Kachenko aka Sergei Jeff, 43 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:51,760 Speaker 1: fell from the window of his luxury Moscow apartment. This 44 00:02:51,919 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: wasn't your usual Russian window plummet, though, this one was 45 00:02:55,520 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: caught on camera. In the grainy camera pH and footage, 46 00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: Sergei Jef can be seen hanging from the window of 47 00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:06,120 Speaker 1: his apartment about fifty feet up. He's wearing black trousers, 48 00:03:06,200 --> 00:03:08,760 Speaker 1: a gray sweater, and looks to have no shoes on. 49 00:03:09,680 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: In broad daylight, Jeff is stood there, perched with his 50 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 1: feet on the sill of the window below him and 51 00:03:14,880 --> 00:03:16,959 Speaker 1: with his hands holding the upper sill of his own 52 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:20,919 Speaker 1: apartment window. It's a precarious scene, to say the least. 53 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:24,800 Speaker 1: Someone inside the apartment is at the window trying to help. 54 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:30,600 Speaker 1: Apparently this was Sergei Jeff's girlfriend. The story goes that 55 00:03:30,639 --> 00:03:33,240 Speaker 1: the two had been having a blazing argument and that 56 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 1: Sergei Jeff decided to literally climb out of the window 57 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,760 Speaker 1: of their apartment to hang from the building in a 58 00:03:39,800 --> 00:03:44,320 Speaker 1: bid to scare his girlfriend, presumably some kind of messed 59 00:03:44,400 --> 00:03:47,280 Speaker 1: up threat to kill himself if she left him, or 60 00:03:47,320 --> 00:03:51,840 Speaker 1: something like that. As my guess, at least in the footage, 61 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:55,080 Speaker 1: Sergei Jeff loses his footing and begins to flail with 62 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:59,320 Speaker 1: just his hands holding onto the window. His girlfriend moves 63 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:02,640 Speaker 1: back into the apartment out of sight, perhaps looking for 64 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:07,160 Speaker 1: something to assist her boyfriend. Before long, Sergei Jeff loses 65 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 1: his grip and of course falls to his death. He 66 00:04:11,400 --> 00:04:14,600 Speaker 1: was pronounced dead at the scene, with Russian emergency workers 67 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:17,320 Speaker 1: bundling his corpse into a black bag on the pavement. 68 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 1: Several photos of this were circulated. The Russian authorities attributed 69 00:04:23,160 --> 00:04:28,359 Speaker 1: his death to what is essentially misadventure. I'm really not 70 00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:32,440 Speaker 1: sure what to make of this. That Dan Rappaport died 71 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:36,279 Speaker 1: the same way as his soho room's business partner is 72 00:04:36,360 --> 00:04:40,640 Speaker 1: extremely suspicious when you take into account all the other factors, 73 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:44,560 Speaker 1: such as Rappaport's anti Putinism, the taxi old, the Kremlin, 74 00:04:44,839 --> 00:04:49,840 Speaker 1: and his proximity to US politicians. After watching the footage 75 00:04:49,839 --> 00:04:53,040 Speaker 1: of Sergei Jeff falling to his death, though it does 76 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:56,919 Speaker 1: just feel like an accident, making it possibly an incredibly 77 00:04:57,040 --> 00:05:02,080 Speaker 1: unlikely but actual coincidence. Is that or someone sent the 78 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:06,880 Speaker 1: world's most inept hitman after Sergei Jeff. If you're going 79 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:09,440 Speaker 1: to fling someone out of a window to assassinate them, 80 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:13,599 Speaker 1: daylight is surely not the ideal moment to do so. Also, 81 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:17,039 Speaker 1: a full shove out the window, as in keeping it 82 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:20,560 Speaker 1: all in one movement, seems like the optimal way to 83 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:23,919 Speaker 1: do so. Now. I've never pushed anyone out of a window, 84 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:27,520 Speaker 1: and I don't intend to, but I imagine leaving a person 85 00:05:27,600 --> 00:05:30,200 Speaker 1: perched on the windowsill for a few minutes is not 86 00:05:30,200 --> 00:05:34,240 Speaker 1: only harder to do, but less effective than the aforementioned 87 00:05:34,760 --> 00:05:38,320 Speaker 1: full shove. That said, if there ever was a way 88 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 1: to make a death look like an accident, this convoluted 89 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:44,719 Speaker 1: window method might be ideal. I don't know. I'm not 90 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:48,040 Speaker 1: an assassin. It does seem unlikely to me that Sergei 91 00:05:48,160 --> 00:05:51,920 Speaker 1: Jeff was murdered, though, unless maybe someone else was inside 92 00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:55,760 Speaker 1: the apartment alongside Jeff's girlfriend and she was in on it. 93 00:05:56,240 --> 00:05:59,400 Speaker 1: There's no evidence that's the case. Though, this really might 94 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:04,320 Speaker 1: just be a massive coincidence, So whatever happened. We do 95 00:06:04,440 --> 00:06:07,560 Speaker 1: know that Dan Rappaport met the same fate as Sergei 96 00:06:07,680 --> 00:06:12,919 Speaker 1: jeff a higher fall from his own apartment window. Rapperport's 97 00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:16,680 Speaker 1: situation is a lot murkier, though, Whilst on the surface 98 00:06:16,839 --> 00:06:19,520 Speaker 1: Rappaport might seem like a bit of a soft target 99 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:23,200 Speaker 1: for perhaps a Kremlin linked hit that out of the 100 00:06:23,279 --> 00:06:25,760 Speaker 1: factors at play that could make him a target for 101 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:49,200 Speaker 1: Oligarch violence. During the months leading up to his death, 102 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:52,880 Speaker 1: Dan Rappaport was openly complaining about a sour deal with 103 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:57,040 Speaker 1: a Russian venture capital firm. He'd apparently been stiffed out 104 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:01,000 Speaker 1: of around ten thousand dollars details of scarce. From what 105 00:07:01,080 --> 00:07:04,719 Speaker 1: I can gather, Rappaport either invested in or was owe 106 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:09,159 Speaker 1: the money by an unnamed Russian BC company. Yes, he 107 00:07:09,279 --> 00:07:12,800 Speaker 1: was doing business with Russia in twenty twenty two, even 108 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:16,600 Speaker 1: as the Russian invasion of Ukraine raged on, something Rappaport 109 00:07:16,760 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 1: was very openly opposed to. Now you might be wondering 110 00:07:20,800 --> 00:07:24,360 Speaker 1: why a multimillionaire would care about a ten thousand dollars loss. 111 00:07:25,200 --> 00:07:27,720 Speaker 1: I think in this case it's quite simple. It's the 112 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:31,200 Speaker 1: principle of it. He didn't care so much about the money, 113 00:07:31,280 --> 00:07:33,600 Speaker 1: but he did care about getting screwed on a deal. 114 00:07:34,080 --> 00:07:38,960 Speaker 1: That's pretty straightforward and I think understandable. Rappaport wanted to 115 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:41,960 Speaker 1: drag this Russian VC company through the mud to try 116 00:07:41,960 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: and ruin their reputation after they messed him around. In 117 00:07:46,080 --> 00:07:50,120 Speaker 1: April twenty twenty two, he posted about this VC scenario 118 00:07:50,240 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 1: on his Facebook page, somewhere he was often very vocal 119 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: and active, and he messaged a friend about it, saying, quote, 120 00:07:58,800 --> 00:08:01,520 Speaker 1: I need a small favor. I just posted on Facebook 121 00:08:01,560 --> 00:08:03,920 Speaker 1: about a Russian BC firm trying to screw me for 122 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:07,080 Speaker 1: ten K. I would really appreciate if you could like 123 00:08:07,160 --> 00:08:10,080 Speaker 1: and or comment on it. I don't expect to get paid, 124 00:08:10,440 --> 00:08:14,080 Speaker 1: but I want to maximize their public embarrassment. Ends quote. 125 00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:18,160 Speaker 1: Whilst little more is known about this situation, it does 126 00:08:18,200 --> 00:08:21,440 Speaker 1: show that Rappaport had more than a few active dispute 127 00:08:21,440 --> 00:08:24,760 Speaker 1: links to Russia. At the time of his death, the 128 00:08:24,840 --> 00:08:27,640 Speaker 1: Kremlin had shut down some of his businesses and accused 129 00:08:27,720 --> 00:08:30,800 Speaker 1: him of tax evasion. He was openly backing one of 130 00:08:30,840 --> 00:08:35,319 Speaker 1: Putin's biggest enemies, with Navali. He supported Ukraine. He was 131 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:38,960 Speaker 1: a vocal critic of Putin's authoritarian rule he had a 132 00:08:39,000 --> 00:08:42,160 Speaker 1: dispute with a Russian VC firm, and he even worked 133 00:08:42,160 --> 00:08:45,280 Speaker 1: with the US government to try to increase Western sanctions 134 00:08:45,559 --> 00:08:49,360 Speaker 1: on Putin. Rappaport was not in the Kremlins good books, 135 00:08:49,360 --> 00:08:52,720 Speaker 1: to say the least. He was a high profile Putin critic, 136 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:56,440 Speaker 1: and by association was a problem for anyone who thrives 137 00:08:56,480 --> 00:09:00,000 Speaker 1: under Putin's iron rule, as he had done for several years. 138 00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:04,520 Speaker 1: Despite his constant agitation against the Russian state and his 139 00:09:04,640 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: many dealings within it in the past, Rappaport did not 140 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:11,440 Speaker 1: keep a low profile. He was bombastic in his messaging 141 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:14,520 Speaker 1: and frankly a bit of a show off. He'd often 142 00:09:14,559 --> 00:09:18,720 Speaker 1: be photographed on the socialite scene, frequenting upmarket venues in 143 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:22,480 Speaker 1: his expensive suits and designer glasses. He'd post for photos 144 00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:25,280 Speaker 1: outside the White House wearing a Ukraine badge on the 145 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:28,080 Speaker 1: lapel of his suit. In the months before his death, 146 00:09:28,120 --> 00:09:31,640 Speaker 1: he posted photos of himself surrounded by beautiful women in 147 00:09:31,679 --> 00:09:35,000 Speaker 1: the shanky Connaught Hotel in London. A room there costs 148 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:38,959 Speaker 1: over five hundred pounds a night. Rappaport was a businessman 149 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:41,679 Speaker 1: who enjoyed the finer things in life, and he wanted 150 00:09:41,720 --> 00:09:44,520 Speaker 1: you to know about it. What he shared, though, was 151 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:48,199 Speaker 1: what he wanted out there. What he hid was quite different. 152 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:57,000 Speaker 1: Rappaport had a serious secret identity. In twenty eighteen, four 153 00:09:57,080 --> 00:10:01,360 Speaker 1: years before Rappaport died, a DC based journalist named Alexei 154 00:10:01,440 --> 00:10:05,760 Speaker 1: Kuzumenko dug into the background of a man named David Duberg. 155 00:10:06,600 --> 00:10:11,760 Speaker 1: David Duberg was a senior Pentagon analyst on Russia released 156 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:15,719 Speaker 1: that's what he claimed. Many journalists claim this about duw 157 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:21,280 Speaker 1: Berg too, citing his work without question. David Duberg ran 158 00:10:21,320 --> 00:10:24,320 Speaker 1: a popular Facebook page and he was regularly quoted in 159 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:27,440 Speaker 1: the media as a Pentagon insider when it came to 160 00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:32,880 Speaker 1: Ukraine and Russia. However, the journalist Kuzumenko discovered that du 161 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:37,080 Speaker 1: Berg was not quite who he claimed to be. Kuzumenko 162 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:40,360 Speaker 1: didn't want to be interviewed for sad Oligarch for whatever reason, 163 00:10:40,720 --> 00:10:43,400 Speaker 1: but his work on this is very revealing in itself. 164 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:48,240 Speaker 1: It seems that David Duberg, the Pentagon insider often cited 165 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:51,680 Speaker 1: as a real life analyst, was actually a persona set 166 00:10:51,760 --> 00:10:55,640 Speaker 1: up by Dan Rappaport. Not only that, but to keep 167 00:10:55,679 --> 00:11:00,440 Speaker 1: the ruse looking authentic, Rappaport falsified identification dot Com documents, 168 00:11:00,720 --> 00:11:04,720 Speaker 1: including a Pentagon idcat. This is a crime in the 169 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:06,880 Speaker 1: US and could get you as many as three years 170 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:10,920 Speaker 1: in prison. What the hell was Dan? Rapoport up to 171 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:15,840 Speaker 1: the David Duburg alter ego have made an appearance online. 172 00:11:15,960 --> 00:11:20,679 Speaker 1: In April twenty sixteen, Ukrainian new site named Dialogue dot 173 00:11:20,840 --> 00:11:24,400 Speaker 1: ua announced that Duwburg would be writing for them. They 174 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:29,280 Speaker 1: said that he was an American soldier analyst, military history specialist, 175 00:11:29,640 --> 00:11:33,160 Speaker 1: officer of the US Army, political consultant of the US 176 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:38,400 Speaker 1: State Department, Department of Defense, and national security analyst. The 177 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:42,880 Speaker 1: full ticket Dialogue dot yua went into great detail about 178 00:11:42,880 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 1: this fake new writer David Duberg. They spoke about his parents, 179 00:11:47,360 --> 00:11:50,000 Speaker 1: his high school, and how he was raised. They said 180 00:11:50,040 --> 00:11:54,520 Speaker 1: Duburg had been previously deployed to Somalia, Yemen, Kosovo, Afghanistan, 181 00:11:54,559 --> 00:11:57,640 Speaker 1: in Iraq. He was a lieutenant colonel before becoming a 182 00:11:57,720 --> 00:12:01,640 Speaker 1: senior analyst for the US Department of Defense. They even 183 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:05,200 Speaker 1: included a photo of du Berg, a muscular white guy 184 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:08,600 Speaker 1: dressed in olive drab and a backwards cap, and the 185 00:12:08,600 --> 00:12:11,199 Speaker 1: photo is leaning over one side of his pickup truck 186 00:12:11,280 --> 00:12:16,240 Speaker 1: with one hand cuddling his dog. Wholesome based on his forearms. Alauren, 187 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:19,840 Speaker 1: This supposed Duberg character looks like he can bench four 188 00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:24,200 Speaker 1: plates with ease. He's pretty much a routine tooting US 189 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:28,640 Speaker 1: soldier archetype. Compare this to Dan Rappaport. A man had 190 00:12:28,679 --> 00:12:30,880 Speaker 1: never been to war, he was skinny, and he wore 191 00:12:30,960 --> 00:12:34,839 Speaker 1: slim fits suits and shirts with loose buttons. Was David 192 00:12:34,920 --> 00:12:39,160 Speaker 1: Duberg Dan Rappaport's tyler Durdham, I want you to hit 193 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:42,680 Speaker 1: me as hard as a key In the article, it 194 00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:46,920 Speaker 1: says quote. From spring twenty fifteen to Autumn twenty seventeen, 195 00:12:47,320 --> 00:12:51,360 Speaker 1: du Berg maintained a popular Facebook page written predominantly in 196 00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:56,439 Speaker 1: fluent though somewhat Americanized Russian, with occasional posts in English. 197 00:12:57,040 --> 00:13:00,360 Speaker 1: The Facebook was originally started in May twenty fifth Dean 198 00:13:00,800 --> 00:13:03,560 Speaker 1: and quickly began its rise to prominence. This was a 199 00:13:03,559 --> 00:13:07,640 Speaker 1: time when President Obama maintained a relatively reserved stance towards 200 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:11,120 Speaker 1: Russi's aggression in Ukraine. We s them peaked in February 201 00:13:11,160 --> 00:13:14,880 Speaker 1: twenty fifteen with the Battle of de Boltzeburg. Many in 202 00:13:15,000 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 1: Ukraine and those among Russian anti poutine circles sought a 203 00:13:18,880 --> 00:13:22,679 Speaker 1: stronger stance from America against the Kremlin, either through direct 204 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:26,320 Speaker 1: action or in rhetoric. Du Burg presented as a public 205 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:29,680 Speaker 1: source from within the Pentagon, appeared to fill the latter role. 206 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:33,560 Speaker 1: Along with his Facebook profile, du Burg maintained a public 207 00:13:33,640 --> 00:13:37,040 Speaker 1: LinkedIn account, a Google Plus profile, and a website at 208 00:13:37,120 --> 00:13:41,480 Speaker 1: du Burg's list dot com. Du Burg's LinkedIn profile bolstered 209 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:44,720 Speaker 1: a sense of legitimacy, where he displayed his connections with 210 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:48,400 Speaker 1: a number of well known Russia watchers, including Michael mcfull, 211 00:13:48,679 --> 00:13:52,439 Speaker 1: the former US Ambassador to Russia, David Satter, a prominent 212 00:13:52,480 --> 00:13:57,960 Speaker 1: American Russia expert and historian, and Mark Golotti, a prominent kremlinologist, 213 00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:02,000 Speaker 1: and many others. Furthermore, he had a number of endorsements 214 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:05,040 Speaker 1: for various skills, a feature in LinkedIn that gave his 215 00:14:05,120 --> 00:14:10,800 Speaker 1: profile a sense of authenticity ends quote. So through David Duberg, 216 00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:15,199 Speaker 1: Dan Rappaport was building a fictional yet highly believable profile 217 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:20,080 Speaker 1: of an anti Putin Pentagon analyst with all the right credentials. 218 00:14:20,560 --> 00:14:23,800 Speaker 1: David Duberg was an intelligent, tough guy who was heavily 219 00:14:23,840 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 1: critical of the Kremlin. Problem was, he didn't exist. David 220 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:34,480 Speaker 1: Duberg's Facebook page was a collection of boomer esque Patriot 221 00:14:34,640 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 1: type iconography, not far Ride or anything like that, just 222 00:14:38,560 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 1: your average West is Best type vibe through Duburg. Rappaport 223 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:47,720 Speaker 1: was at that time promoting US Russian friendship with a 224 00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:50,800 Speaker 1: Facebook banner of what is one of the worst designs 225 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:54,640 Speaker 1: I have ever seen in my entire life. It's two 226 00:14:54,680 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 1: hands reaching out fist bumping with a pen in the 227 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:00,760 Speaker 1: middle of them that's made out of a bullet. The 228 00:15:00,840 --> 00:15:04,160 Speaker 1: left fist is painted in an American flag and the 229 00:15:04,280 --> 00:15:07,720 Speaker 1: right fist is painted with a Russian flag. It looks 230 00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:11,960 Speaker 1: like a gas station energy drink. It is an absolute disaster, 231 00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:15,600 Speaker 1: and in that way, it's kind of perfect. That said, 232 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:19,680 Speaker 1: the page does look very legit. The bio says, quote, 233 00:15:19,800 --> 00:15:23,240 Speaker 1: I'm a veteran of the United States Forces. I'm of 234 00:15:23,320 --> 00:15:26,840 Speaker 1: Russian descent. I blog on history. I wrote the truth 235 00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:29,760 Speaker 1: and facts all that is being hidden from Russians by 236 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:33,760 Speaker 1: the Russian state media. Ends quote. There are numerous other 237 00:15:33,800 --> 00:15:38,320 Speaker 1: photos of this supposed David dubog fella with other people. 238 00:15:38,880 --> 00:15:41,680 Speaker 1: There are photos of this guy wearing military dress uniform, 239 00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:45,200 Speaker 1: dripping in medals, a photo of him carrying a leopard 240 00:15:45,200 --> 00:15:48,920 Speaker 1: for some reason, and a front line looking photo. He's 241 00:15:48,920 --> 00:15:53,440 Speaker 1: in full deployment gear, helmet, body armor and of course sunglasses. 242 00:15:53,920 --> 00:15:56,920 Speaker 1: But he has a Freemason patch Velt roode onto his 243 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:02,120 Speaker 1: chest drink. The Freemasons being a global secret also pretty 244 00:16:02,160 --> 00:16:06,000 Speaker 1: much open society, made up of usually wealthy men of 245 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:10,120 Speaker 1: some public standing. Conspiracy theorists think that they rule the world. 246 00:16:10,560 --> 00:16:13,440 Speaker 1: In reality, whilst they are a huge club of well 247 00:16:13,440 --> 00:16:19,200 Speaker 1: connected people, they're not that powerful. Freemasonry can and has, however, 248 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:24,760 Speaker 1: become a breeding ground for elitist cliques. In my decade 249 00:16:24,840 --> 00:16:29,960 Speaker 1: of reporting from front lines across the world with regular soldiers, militias, 250 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: paramilitary forces, you name it, I have never ever seen 251 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:38,760 Speaker 1: a Freemason patch. I've seen many different patches, I actually 252 00:16:38,760 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: collect them, but I have never seen a free Mason 253 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:45,120 Speaker 1: patch in a conflict zone. Naturally, that stood out to 254 00:16:45,160 --> 00:16:48,880 Speaker 1: me clearly. The guy Rapperport, howevers, did these images from, 255 00:16:49,280 --> 00:16:54,720 Speaker 1: was associated with Freemasonry. Either way, Rappaport did a very 256 00:16:54,760 --> 00:16:58,600 Speaker 1: good job of deceiving people with the David Duberg profile, 257 00:16:59,400 --> 00:17:04,080 Speaker 1: but didn't exist. So who is in the photos? It's 258 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:09,000 Speaker 1: Steve Ferrow, one of Dan Rappaport's college friends. This guy 259 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:12,199 Speaker 1: isn't Russian, He's from Texas. In fact, in some of 260 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:16,280 Speaker 1: the counterfeit juburg id cards Rapperport had made. The ID 261 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:21,520 Speaker 1: photo of Duburg is poorly photoshopped from group photos of Ferro. 262 00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:25,080 Speaker 1: This level of deception is a lot of work, but 263 00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:30,480 Speaker 1: to what end. Let's hear what Kuzomenko wrote about this quote. 264 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:34,240 Speaker 1: Kasenya Kirilova, a Russian journalist who was relocated to the 265 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,119 Speaker 1: United States, was an early witness to the rise of 266 00:17:37,200 --> 00:17:41,320 Speaker 1: David Duberg's profile and influence online in the growing interest, 267 00:17:41,840 --> 00:17:46,320 Speaker 1: especially among those in anti Kremlin activist and opposition circles 268 00:17:46,320 --> 00:17:49,760 Speaker 1: in the United States. Kirilova said that in twenty fifteen, 269 00:17:50,320 --> 00:17:53,399 Speaker 1: everyone in the close knit Russian opposition community in the 270 00:17:53,520 --> 00:17:58,000 Speaker 1: US was talking about David Duberg, the new vocal anti 271 00:17:58,040 --> 00:18:03,120 Speaker 1: poutin Pentagon official. Kirilova said that in twenty fifteen, being 272 00:18:03,160 --> 00:18:06,280 Speaker 1: a fresh arrival to America after immigrating to the country 273 00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:09,840 Speaker 1: a year earlier, she struggled to connect to established American 274 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:14,359 Speaker 1: experts in her field of Kremlin and propaganda studies. Her 275 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:16,680 Speaker 1: friends in her new home, including other members of the 276 00:18:16,760 --> 00:18:21,679 Speaker 1: Russian opposition community, pointed her to Dubug. As Kirilova describes, 277 00:18:21,880 --> 00:18:25,640 Speaker 1: Duburg was highly effective as a tool of counter propaganda 278 00:18:25,800 --> 00:18:29,640 Speaker 1: during the heights of Kremlin organized this information campaigns, David 279 00:18:29,720 --> 00:18:34,280 Speaker 1: Duberg enjoyed tremendous support from numerous individuals. On occasions he 280 00:18:34,359 --> 00:18:38,040 Speaker 1: posted materials that really could highlight Russia's state under Putin. 281 00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:41,840 Speaker 1: He was supported not because the public was dumb. He 282 00:18:41,920 --> 00:18:44,879 Speaker 1: enjoyed support of smart, decent people who use some of 283 00:18:44,920 --> 00:18:48,320 Speaker 1: the material he provided in their own online argument with 284 00:18:48,480 --> 00:18:52,640 Speaker 1: pro pouting crowds. David Duburg endeared himself to many within 285 00:18:52,720 --> 00:18:55,600 Speaker 1: Russia's opposition and in Ukraine when in the summer of 286 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:59,200 Speaker 1: twenty sixteen he penned and urged his followers to also 287 00:18:59,400 --> 00:19:03,320 Speaker 1: send a letter to Facebook's managers urging the company to 288 00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:09,160 Speaker 1: address its moderators alleged pro Kremlin bias ends quote. Clearly, 289 00:19:09,359 --> 00:19:13,280 Speaker 1: David Dubo was more than just a Facebook profile. Rappaport 290 00:19:13,400 --> 00:19:17,040 Speaker 1: was in a sense infiltrating his own community US based 291 00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:21,639 Speaker 1: Russian anti Putin dissidents. But why well, My guess is 292 00:19:21,840 --> 00:19:24,760 Speaker 1: people are less likely to listen to a former gas 293 00:19:24,840 --> 00:19:29,600 Speaker 1: sales middleman turned nightclub owner who made millions under Putin's rule. 294 00:19:30,080 --> 00:19:32,720 Speaker 1: Du Burg was nothing like that. He was an urra 295 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:36,480 Speaker 1: us soldier with Russian heritage and the feeling that America 296 00:19:36,560 --> 00:19:39,480 Speaker 1: is always in the right. It's a much easier sell 297 00:19:40,200 --> 00:19:43,040 Speaker 1: that said, I don't think what dubog said was radically 298 00:19:43,040 --> 00:19:46,280 Speaker 1: different from what Rappaport himself actually thought. It was just 299 00:19:46,359 --> 00:19:50,520 Speaker 1: dressed up in a lot of nonsense. Said nonsense worked though. 300 00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:55,560 Speaker 1: Duberg was promoted by influential people in the scene. Slava Rabenovitch, 301 00:19:55,760 --> 00:19:59,280 Speaker 1: a Russian American financer and blogger with nearly twenty five 302 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:04,920 Speaker 1: thousand fi Facebook followers, called Duberg his friend, and Alexander Suttnik, 303 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:09,680 Speaker 1: an opposition journalist and activist with over one hundred thousand followers, 304 00:20:10,080 --> 00:20:14,600 Speaker 1: promoted Duberg's writing. Duberg's influence grew when he was invited 305 00:20:14,680 --> 00:20:18,800 Speaker 1: onto a conference call with Facebook managers and Facebook Global 306 00:20:18,800 --> 00:20:22,960 Speaker 1: Head of Content Policy to speak about Krimlin propaganda operations 307 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:26,800 Speaker 1: on the site, something that actually has real world significance. 308 00:20:27,040 --> 00:20:30,439 Speaker 1: Due to many people's inclination not to question what they 309 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:34,119 Speaker 1: read on the Internet if it comes from an alternative perspective, 310 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:39,720 Speaker 1: many people literally believe my side good, other side bad, 311 00:20:40,119 --> 00:20:44,240 Speaker 1: everything against my side propaganda. This is a bipartisan issue, 312 00:20:44,280 --> 00:21:04,800 Speaker 1: trust me. So Duwberg was making waves in twenty fifteen, 313 00:21:04,840 --> 00:21:07,720 Speaker 1: he was noted in Ukrainian media when an article was 314 00:21:07,760 --> 00:21:11,520 Speaker 1: written about one of his many Facebook screens. The article 315 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:15,680 Speaker 1: was titled ten days will Suffice a Pentagon official gives 316 00:21:15,720 --> 00:21:18,240 Speaker 1: a detailed description of how Russia will lose a war 317 00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:23,080 Speaker 1: with NATO. Many reporters and propagandists shared Uberg's work and 318 00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:27,639 Speaker 1: critically even interviewing him via email without double checking any 319 00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:33,600 Speaker 1: of his credentials. Sadly, especially in conflict reporting, journalism sometimes 320 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:36,320 Speaker 1: takes a back seat in favor of pr if it 321 00:21:36,400 --> 00:21:40,360 Speaker 1: concerns the perceived good guys. It's wrong, but that's how 322 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:43,960 Speaker 1: it is, especially when social media fame is in the equation. 323 00:21:45,359 --> 00:21:49,480 Speaker 1: So anyway, David Duberg was ostensibly speaking on behalf of 324 00:21:49,480 --> 00:21:52,040 Speaker 1: the Pentagon, or at least he was projected that way. 325 00:21:52,520 --> 00:21:55,880 Speaker 1: He was making wild statements about war that would give 326 00:21:56,000 --> 00:21:59,960 Speaker 1: Ukrainians and anti Putin Russians a false sense of secure. 327 00:22:00,960 --> 00:22:03,600 Speaker 1: What Rappaport was doing here was pretty terrible, to be 328 00:22:03,640 --> 00:22:10,639 Speaker 1: honest with you. By twenty sixteen, David Duberg was hot property. Union, 329 00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:15,520 Speaker 1: a major Ukrainian information agency, ran two pieces on Duberg. 330 00:22:16,119 --> 00:22:19,560 Speaker 1: A Russian ATO war Pentagon analyst predicts how it could 331 00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:22,879 Speaker 1: look and how it will end, and Pentagon weighs in 332 00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:26,840 Speaker 1: on the possible scenario of events in Dombas Putin's perspectives 333 00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:31,359 Speaker 1: Focus dot Yue published Pentagon gave its prediction of the 334 00:22:31,400 --> 00:22:36,440 Speaker 1: future of Dombas the hugely popular Sogodya dot Yue published 335 00:22:36,600 --> 00:22:41,400 Speaker 1: Pentagon gives valuable advice to Ukraine's armed forces and Pentagon 336 00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:47,440 Speaker 1: explains Russia's aggressive international posturing. On the same day, Ukraine's 337 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:52,800 Speaker 1: highly popular television channel ICTV also quoted Duburg in news 338 00:22:52,880 --> 00:22:57,000 Speaker 1: items on its website, including Russia's defeat in the Dombas. 339 00:22:57,240 --> 00:23:02,080 Speaker 1: The Pentagon gave details and the U speaks on Kremlin's expectations. 340 00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:06,199 Speaker 1: As you can see, he's creating a false sense of 341 00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:12,280 Speaker 1: security for Ukrainians. Around this time, the Kremlin took notice 342 00:23:12,280 --> 00:23:17,880 Speaker 1: of David Duberg too. Remember he is Rappaport. Rappaport is heat, 343 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:23,400 Speaker 1: so the Kremlin also took notice of Dan Rappaport. As 344 00:23:23,520 --> 00:23:27,800 Speaker 1: Jewsamenko writes, quote Dubog was brashed to the point of 345 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:33,040 Speaker 1: being offensive and equal part anti Putin and patriotic to America. 346 00:23:33,240 --> 00:23:35,920 Speaker 1: David Dubog was just the kind of an American many 347 00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:40,520 Speaker 1: in the Russian opposition craved. His statements also pleased Ukrainian 348 00:23:40,560 --> 00:23:44,639 Speaker 1: online crowds, eager for an insider perspective affirming the belief 349 00:23:44,680 --> 00:23:47,840 Speaker 1: that America and its military minds were firmly on its 350 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,720 Speaker 1: side in its ongoing war with Russia and its proxies. However, 351 00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:55,240 Speaker 1: these same traits that endeared Duberg to Putin's foes in 352 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:57,919 Speaker 1: the fall of twenty sixteen turned out to be in 353 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:01,480 Speaker 1: high demand for Russian media looking for confirmations to the 354 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:06,359 Speaker 1: image of the warmongering, russiaphobic Pentagon long promulgated by the 355 00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:12,560 Speaker 1: Kremlin anti American propaganda ends quote and so Duwberg's comments 356 00:24:12,600 --> 00:24:16,199 Speaker 1: began to pop up in Russia's Kremlin run media organizations. 357 00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:21,160 Speaker 1: Regnum dot Iu posted an article titled Pentagon speaks up 358 00:24:21,160 --> 00:24:23,920 Speaker 1: on NATO's war against Russia. It will be a war 359 00:24:23,960 --> 00:24:27,000 Speaker 1: of rifle against the laser gun. Du Berg is cited 360 00:24:27,080 --> 00:24:31,600 Speaker 1: as a US Department of Defense analyst. As you can see, 361 00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:35,240 Speaker 1: rapperports bullshit began to catch up with him. Now, believe 362 00:24:35,240 --> 00:24:37,640 Speaker 1: it or not, there's still so much more to this story. 363 00:24:38,040 --> 00:24:40,879 Speaker 1: Sergeimy had been going over it, and this one really 364 00:24:40,920 --> 00:24:43,600 Speaker 1: deserves a little more time. To boil it all down. 365 00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:45,919 Speaker 1: There's a lot of information in this case that we 366 00:24:46,040 --> 00:24:49,280 Speaker 1: just can't glide over. The end will be spectacular lo 367 00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:53,880 Speaker 1: something like that. In the next episode, the final part 368 00:24:53,920 --> 00:24:58,280 Speaker 1: of what's first becoming a Dan Rappaport subplot, we'll discover 369 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:01,200 Speaker 1: who first blew the whistle on his death and how 370 00:25:01,240 --> 00:25:07,119 Speaker 1: the David Duberg fraud was exposed. Sad Oliger is a 371 00:25:07,359 --> 00:25:13,960 Speaker 1: H eleven production for Cool Zone Media and iHeartRadio. Hosted, produced, researched, 372 00:25:14,040 --> 00:25:19,560 Speaker 1: and edited by me Jake Hanrahan and Sergei Slipchenko. Co 373 00:25:19,640 --> 00:25:25,120 Speaker 1: produced by Sophie Lichtman. Music by Sam Black, artwork by 374 00:25:25,240 --> 00:25:30,560 Speaker 1: Adam mcdoyle, soundmix by Splicing Block. Go to Jakeanrahan dot 375 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:32,119 Speaker 1: com for more information.