FBI Identifying A ‘Muslim Terrorist’ Who Derailed An Amtrak Train In Washington Is Fake News

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) identifying a “Muslim terrorist” as the person who caused the crash of an Amtrak train in Washington by sabotaging the tracks is fake news.

There is no truth to current reports that a Muslim man deliberately caused the tragic crash, which occurred on Dec. 18, 2017 when an Amtrak train on its way from Seattle to Portland derailed and crashed in DuPont, Wash., killing three people and leaving scores of others injured.

Where did the fake news originate? Various disreputable web sites published articles under headlines such as “BREAKING: FBI Identifies Muslim Terrorist Who Derailed Amtrak Train” and “Derailed Amtrak Train Was No Accident After All, Muslim Man Arrested.”

These web sites reported that the crash was deliberately caused by a ‘Muslim terrorist’ who sabotaged the tracks to cause a derailment. You can read an example of the fake news below:

The Amtrak tragedy over the weekend was, as we all predicted, no accident — and according to the FBI, the terrorist was from the “religion of peace.”

Muhammad Christopher Blair, 53, was born in rural Ohio to a Christian woman and a Muslim man she fell in love with who ultimately abandoned his family — but his religion and his hatred of America lived on through Blair, who was apparently “activated” over the weekend when he placed a gold Sacajawea dollar on the tracks above an overpass in Washington state in order to derail the train.

Traditionally, a penny would be used (that’s what you see in old cartoons, right?) but the United Railway Administration began requiring changes in trains that would prevent coins at the time from causing damage when kids decided they wanted to play a prank. The gold dollar, however, is thicker than any currency at the time and is capable to causing a train to derail according to Harvard physics professor, Dr. James Wright.

However, there is no truth to the above story, according to Snopes. Rather, all of these reports were false and were spread by a known fake news network that includes sites such as nofakenews.online and reaganwasright.com, which carry identical disclaimers identifying their content as fiction:

Everything on this website is fiction. It is not a lie and it is not fake news because it is not real. If you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined. Any similarities between this site’s pure fantasy and actual people, places, and events are purely coincidental and all images should be considered altered and satirical.

Additionally, some of the sites used a completely unrelated photograph of Shaker Aamer, a Saudi citizen who was freed in 2015 after spending 13 years in detention at Guantánamo Bay prison in Cuba.

Here are some examples of people sharing the fake news on social media.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the Amtrak train was traveling nearly 80 miles per hour in a 30-mile-per-hour zone at the time of the accident. The board’s review of the crash did not disclose what the crew was doing as the train barreled into a curve headed for a trestle.

Federal investigators say they have not yet spoken with all five members of the train crew, as several remain hospitalized. “The crew was not observed to use any personal electronic devices during the time frame reviewed,” the National Traffic Safety Board said after its review of recordings.

Photo Credit: Source

Recommended for You

Webcast, January 11th: Everything CEOs & Startup Founders Need To Know About Technical Advisors, CTOs, Agencies, and Engineers