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CHICAGO (WGNTV) — An elite private school in Chicago is facing online criticism after a dean was recorded by a right-wing activist group talking about the school’s sex-ed programming.
Francis Parker School in Lincoln Park is the latest target of “Project Veritas,” a far-right activist group.
One of the contributors of the group recorded a video that appears to show the school dean saying sex toys were shown to students as a part of a discussion.
The school released a statement saying Parker’s board of trustees supports the inclusivity of its curriculum.
A school spokesperson said the dean was “filmed without his knowledge or permission while describing one example of our inclusive, LGBTQ+ affirming a comprehensive approach to sex education. Veritas deceptively edited the video with malicious intent.”
The school’s full statement reads:
Francis W. Parker cares deeply about the health, well-being, and development of our students. Programs designed to help cultivate physical and emotional well-being as well as a strong sense of belonging are central to our mission.
Last week – at an industry conference – one of our employees was targeted by a member of Project Veritas and misled to believe he was conversing with another conference attendee over a coffee. He was filmed without his knowledge or permission while describing one example of our inclusive, LGBTQ+ affirming, and comprehensive approach to sex education. Veritas deceptively edited the video with malicious intent.
Parker administrators and Parker’s Board of Trustees support Parker’s programming, the strength and inclusivity of our curriculum, and the dedicated and talented faculty and staff that teach it.
Right-wing activist James O’Keefe and his secretive Project Veritas group have faced plenty of legal headaches in the past year, including FBI raids, a lawsuit defeat, and two associates pleading guilty in federal court.
Now O’Keefe and Project Veritas have a new problem: a disgruntled, trash-talking former employee and porn performer who has dubbed himself “Jean Jacque the Cock.”
The ex-employee, whose real name is Patrice Thibodeau, has taken to YouTube to reveal what he describes as the organization’s secrets, including the names of O’Keefe’s alleged undercover “sting” operatives and the kinds of hidden cameras he says the group uses.
Making matters worse, Thibodeau seems to relish his role as O’Keefe’s tormentor.
“James is fucking done, bitch,” Thibodeau, a former Project Veritas videographer who left the organization in 2020, said in one of the videos. “I’m laughing my ass off, this is so pathetic.”
Project Veritas has scrambled to stop Thibodeau from disseminating its supposed secrets. On Nov. 7, the group asked the New York Supreme Court for an injunction to prevent Thibodeau from publishing confidential information about his former employer, a filing first reported by the New York Post.
Project Veritas didn’t respond to a request for comment. Thibodeau also declined to comment.
After leaving Project Veritas, Thibodeau is now attempting to launch a social media, comedy, and adult performance career in Florida. Some media outlets have described Thibodeau as a “porn star” in articles about the Project Veritas lawsuit. But the extent of his adult work appears to be a handful of homemade videos of Thibodeau masturbating alone that he then uploaded to various amateur websites.
“The machine requires him to get ‘UCJs’—undercover journalists—to be recruited and work for him, and go on Tinder.”
Thibodeau’s videos about Project Veritas have disappeared from YouTube, and the lawsuit redacted the details of his on-tape revelations. In one video obtained by The Daily Beast, however, Thibodeau revealed the names of people he said worked undercover for Project Veritas, as well as what he described as the group’s methods for running its sting operations on liberal groups.
For example, Thibodeau claims to have been in Washington’s historic Georgetown neighborhood while attractive female Project Veritas operatives attempted to secretly record dates with federal bureaucrats, a plan previously reported by The New York Times.
Thibodeau warned his audience that Project Veritas staffers could still be looking for targets on Washington’s dating sites.
“If you are a person going on a dating app in D.C., you might potentially be on a date with a Project Veritas journalist,” Thibodeau said.
Thibodeau also alleged in the video that Project Veritas uses hidden cameras that like buttons or coffee cups, supplied by a surveillance manufacturer called LawMate. In its lawsuit against Thibodeau, Project Veritas accused him of violating confidentiality clauses in his employment contract regarding “covert devices.”
In the footage, recorded in August, Thibodeau mocks O’Keefe’s group for failing to land any major bombshell videos in 2022. Thibodeau described what he claimed was O’Keefe’s process for running the stings and feeding the right-wing media content “machine.”
“The machine requires him to get ‘UCJs’—undercover journalists—to be recruited and work for him, and go on Tinder,” Thibodeau said.
Thibodeau also claimed that the undercover operatives are trained to issue what Project Veritas calls “elicitations” to their targets, asking questions about Joe Biden, for example, to prompt the unsuspecting people to make damaging statements.
In the video, Thibodeau reveals the full names of multiple women he claims have worked undercover for Project Veritas on the stings. The identities of Project Veritas employees could be useful for liberal groups, which have already shared intelligence on O’Keefe’s associates in attempts to avoid future undercover stings.
“Thibodeau also alleged in the video that Project Veritas uses hidden cameras that look like buttons or coffee cups.”
The Daily Beast was not able to independently confirm Thibodeau’s descriptions of the Project Veritas employees. But the organization itself appeared to acknowledge that at least some of the names revealed by Thibodeau are genuine, describing the names in his video as “highly confidential trade secrets” in its lawsuit.
Thibodeau made his videos in August in the aftermath of a lawsuit filed against Project Veritas by another former employee named Antoinetta Zappier. That complaint painted Project Veritas as a raucous, drug-fueled, sexually charged workplace.
Among other things, Zappier alleged that a person overdosed on drugs during a party at the group’s corporate apartment, that a Project Veritas fundraiser impregnated a “subordinate” and paid for her abortion, and that a wild boat party hosted by O’Keefe culminated in an attendee defecating on the floor. Zappier has also claimed that O’Keefe opened pornography on his office computer multiple times.
Project Veritas has denied Zappier’s allegations.
In his video responding to Zappier’s lawsuit, Thibodeau read an article from The Daily Beast describing the case against O’Keefe and supported Zappier’s descriptions of Project Veritas as a hard-partying workplace. Thibodeau also enthused about O’Keefe’s predicament, saying “Antoinetta has him by the nuts.”
Thibodeau appeared to grind axes against other former Project Veritas employees in his attacks on the group. Thibodeau, who has refashioned himself as a stand-up comedian reminiscent of a morning-zoo shock jock, made crude, misogynistic comments about female Project Veritas employees and their physical attributes in at least one of the videos.
The vendetta from his ex-employee marks just the latest legal problem for O’Keefe, whose home was raided by the FBI last year as part of an investigation into the theft of presidential daughter Ashley Biden’s diary.
In August, two people who admitted to stealing the diary pleaded guilty as part of the federal investigation. Project Veritas has insisted its reporting methods are all legal.
Thibodeau has faced some other legal issues of his own. In Nov. 2021, he was arrested after allegedly cracking the windshield of a Mercedes-Benz with a rock and resisting arrest after police caught him. That misdemeanor case remains open in Florida, with a warrant issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in court earlier this year.
Greens Farm Academy in Westport has fired a teacher who had been placed on leave after the school was made aware of a video of him allegedly discussing underage students.
Project Veritas, the controversial self-described undercover journalism project, Thursday released a secretly recorded video of the teacher allegedly making comments about students at the private school.
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On Friday, Greens Farm Head of school Bob Whelan sent a letter to parents, which was obtained by the Courant, that said:
“I write to inform you that the school has terminated the employment of Dr. Iman Rasti effective immediately. The Project Veritas story came to our attention yesterday, and in accordance with our policies, GFA immediately put Dr. Rasti on administrative leave and promptly commenced an investigation. Dr. Rasti claimed that the statements in the edited video were taken out of context. Dr. Rasti’s grossly inappropriate comments are anathema to everything we stand for.”
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Whelan wrote, that “this incident is deeply troubling and violates the foundation of trust in our community between adults and the students in our care. Nothing in Dr. Rasti’s background check, references, or professional performance while a teacher at GFA would have led us to believe he would act in this manner.”
Whelan wrote that “GFA has robust policies and procedures for child protection, including thorough training for faculty and staff.”
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The Courant has not repeated the comments allegedly made by Rasti on the Project Veritas recording because the remarks referred to juveniles. Rasti could not be reached for comment late Friday.
Westport Police Capt. David Wolf told the Courant Thursday that, at this time, the department is aware of the Project Veritas report but there is no active investigation related to this matter.
Project Veritas, described as a far right-wing activist group, was created by conservative James O’Keefe in 2011. The group is often accused of producing deceptively edited videos of its undercover operations, which use secret recordings. Critics have stated that the nonprofit employs highly deceptive editing to attack targets such as teachers’ unions.
Project Veritas says it is dedicated to exposing corruption, dishonesty, waste, fraud and other misconduct “to achieve a more ethical and transparent society.
Whelan’s letter also said, “We have no tolerance for inappropriate conduct by adults in our community. We remain steadfast in our commitment to providing a safe and supportive campus environment and to making student well-being paramount in all that we do.
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“I recognize that the trust we seek to build every day has been challenged as a result of this incident. I also have unwavering faith in our faculty and staff’s commitment to our mission and our students; we will be prepared to welcome your children back to school on Monday morning,” he wrote.
Project Veritas is now suing one of its former employees in a Manhattan court after the ex-staffer, who now works as a porn star, dished dirt on the right-wing activism group. Patrice Thibodeau allegedly violated his terms of employment with Project Veritas when he took to YouTube to air out some grievances. In heavily redacted court filings, the James O’Keefe-led group alleged that Thibodeau posted six YouTube videos between August and September, under his stage name “Jean Jacques the Cock,” revealing “confidential information” about the company. Thibodeau, who also worked as a top official with the Connecticut Republican Party, reportedly kept posting the “disparaging” videos despite a warning from the media watchdog that he was violating their policies. “I used to work in Republican politics. I worked at Project Veritas… they hate me,” Thibodeau said in one of his videos. “They don’t want to talk to me. I am in Florida doing porn.” Project Veritas is seeking $200,000 in damages and a court order that would prevent Thibodeau from speaking further.
A one-time Project Veritas video editor, who quit to become a porn star in Florida, has been spilling the company’s secrets on YouTube, the company charged in a lawsuit.
Patrice Thibodeau, who also worked as digital director for the Connecticut Republican Party from January 2018 to December 2019 before letting it all hang out online, has repeatedly violated his Project Veritas employment agreements, the company claims in its Manhattan Supreme Court filing.
The right-leaning media watchdog group is known for undercover videos recorded without the subject’s knowledge. It says Thibodeau, 33, published six videos on YouTube in August and September under his stage name, “Jean Jacques the C–k,” revealing the company’s “confidential information,” slamming its personnel and using the business’ name “to promote his career.”
Thibodeau, who worked at Project Veritas from December 2019 to September 2020, kept up the “disparaging videos” even after the company warned he was violating his employment agreements, it said in heavily redacted court papers.
Project Veritas, whose founder, James O’Keefe, was permanently banned from Twitter, said in the lawsuit that its activities “depend heavily on maintaining the confidentiality of its proprietary information, including the identities of its undercover journalists … its sources, its methods and technology, and its ongoing projects.”
The company is seeking $200,000 in damages and a court order barring Thibodeau from breaking his agreements.
Tim Kardish
HARLEYSVILLE, Pa., Nov. 30, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Veritas Medical Solutions is proud to welcome Timothy Kardish to the Veritas family in the role of President. Tim is a successful and innovative business leader with over 17 years of executive leadership and experience within engineered solutions companies. Tim brings to Veritas a passion and focus on profitable growth with his deployment of operational excellence, engaging strategies and best practices.
"I am excited by the opportunity to add value in accelerating Veritas' profitable growth and to build upon Robert and David Farrell's culture and success," shares Tim Kardish.
"Tim's hiring as President is a clear reflection of the company's dedication to excellence. We are a team of highly motivated, talented professionals prepared to advance new paths in the radiation shielding market place. Veritas is poised for growth and bringing Tim on board emboldens our team as we continue to drive innovation and deliver industry firsts on a global scale," states Robert J. Farrell, CEO of Veritas Medical Solutions.
Veritas remains committed to building Cancer Centers of Excellence worldwide and bringing our state-of-the-art shielding solutions to other disciplines throughout the industry. We will do this through the relentless pursuit of our core values - Vision, Excellence, Respect, Integrity, Teamwork, Achieve, and Serve. Our name - VERITAS (Latin for Truth) - sets before us the guiding principles and mission of our company.
About Veritas Shielding Solutions
Veritas is a world leader in the design, production and installation of pre-engineered radiation-shielded facilities and actively serves radiation oncology, medical imaging, radiopharmaceutical, non-destructive testing, sterilization, fusion and nuclear energy generation industries.
For more information, visit https://www.veritas-medicalsolutions.com/.
For media inquiries, contact Veritas at 484-991-8928.
Contact Information:
Glenn Wanamaker
Marketing Manager
info@veritas-medicalsolutions.com
484-991-8928
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Tim Kardish, President at Veritas Medical Solutions
This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com.
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In the priciest market-rate apartment building sale in San Francisco this year, Veritas has purchased a half-block-long 42-unit Russian Hill property for just over $33 million, according to property records. The deal closed in early October but the buyer has not been reported until now.
Dan McGue of Coldwell Banker Commercial Realty repped both sides of the deal between Veritas and Polk and Green Investments, which had owned the 1913 property for more than 60 years. McGue could not confirm the buyer but said via email that they were interested in the property’s “AAA location” on a popular block of Russian Hill, plus its rehabbed units, seismic upgrades and remaining upside.
There were multiple offers on the property, which McGue marketed without an asking price in the spring. The long-time owners decided to sell because they self-managed the property and were “getting up in years, so they wanted to spend their time in other ways,” he said.
Veritas, one of the largest residential landlords in the city, entered into an agreement to buy the 50,000-square-foot property in May, according to property records. In addition to 38 one-bedrooms, four studios and an eight-car garage, the two buildings at 2222-2254 Polk Street have five retail spaces on the ground floor leased to corner tenant Cole Hardware, Italian restaurant Fiorella, Korean dining spot SSAL and Philz Coffee. Vacant residential units have hardwood floors, renovated kitchens and bathrooms and are asking $3,500 and up in rent, according to listings on RentSF Now, well above the city’s current $3,000 average for one-bedrooms.
Veritas did not respond to a request for comment. The building at 2242 Polk Street was purchased by an entity called 2242 Polk LP, but Veritas is named in the May purchase agreement and CEO Yat-Pang Au’s name is on the $23 million loan on the property from East West Bank, according to loan documents.
While agents report that apartment buying has slowed to a crawl due to higher interest rates, Veritas has continued purchasing properties this fall and is also moving forward with its first-ever apartment development on a parking lot it owns downtown.
The sale is by far the biggest trade for a market-rate apartment building this year, though Related Companies sold its 3-acre Mission Bay affordable housing complex, Crescent Cove, for $96 million in April. Before this sale, the biggest close on a market-rate multifamily was an Alamo Square property that went into contract in May and sold for $18 million in August, or $430,000 per unit. The Polk Street property’s $33 million price tag translates to about $785,000 per residential unit, though it also has ground-floor commercial spaces on a well-trafficked commercial corridor, which the Alamo Square property does not.
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General Electric (NYSE:GE) and L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) are among the companies vying to buy rocket maker Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings (NYSE:AJRD), Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the talks.
Aerojet (AJRD) rose as much as 12% in morning trading before giving back some of its gains.
Textron (NYSE:TXT) and private equity firm Veritas Capital also are competing to buy Aerojet (AJRD), whose $4.4 billion takeover by Lockheed Martin (LMT) was blocked by antitrust authorities in February.
Spokespeople for the prospective buyers either declined to comment specifically on the potential deal or didn't respond to Reuters' request for comment.
Aerojet (AJRD) designs and manufactures rocket engines for space, defense, civil and commercial applications. The company made the engines and high-pressure tanks for NASA's Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket as part of the Artemis missions to return people to the moon.
Aerojet's (AJRD) customers include the Pentagon, Boeing (BA), Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Raytheon Technologies (RTX), Reuters reported.
Aerojet's (AJRD) revenue grew less than 1% from a year earlier to $549.8 million in Q3 as the company faced supply-chain delays.
Aerojet's stock had risen 7.4% this year through Nov. 29, contrasting with a 12% decline for the Standard & Poor's 400 midcap stock index (SP400).
Veritas Investments has floated a plan to build 116 apartments on a parking lot in San Francisco’s Tenderloin.
The San Francisco-based developer filed preliminary plans to build the 18-story complex at 101 Turk Street, SF Yimby reported. It would replace a vacant single-story storefront.
The new apartments would be built next to a five-story building with 112 studio apartments built in 1906 at 57 Taylor Street, owned by Veritas and managed by RentSFNow.
Veritas bought the properties at 101-111 Turk Street and 57 Taylor in 2017 for $25.5 million, according to SF Yimby.
Plans call for building an 18-story highrise with 116 apartments, with 4,400 square feet of open space. The apartments would include 62 studios, 12 junior one-bedroom,12 one-bedroom, 18 two-bedroom and 12 three-bedroom units.
The project would use a state density bonus program allowing it to increase residential capacity by 50 percent in exchange for including an unspecified number of affordable units.
It would require demolishing the vacant single-story commercial building at 105 Turk Street and filling the parking lot at 111 Turk Street.
Veritas told SF Yimby that “entitlements will likely take years, so this project won’t be realized anytime soon. But this is a great opportunity to create housing on what would otherwise be a parking lot.”
The new building would be a block from Muni buses and light rail along Market Street, just past the Golden Gate Theatre, and three blocks from the Powell Street BART Station.
It would rise across the street from the Flatiron-style Serif condominium and hotel complex, with 242 units and 236 hotel rooms, that opened last year and has cut prices to offset rising mortgage rates.
Last month Veritas, one of San Francisco’s biggest apartment landlords, bought a four-story Art Deco apartment building in the Marina District for $13.3 million.
— Dana Bartholomew
Greens Farm Academy in Westport has placed a teacher on leave after the school was made aware of a video of him allegedly discussing underage students.
Project Veritas, the controversial self-described undercover journalism project, has released a secretly recorded video of the teacher allegedly making comments about students at the private school.
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Update: The teacher was dismissed from the school
“We have just been made aware of a report of inappropriate comments allegedly made by a teacher at GFA,” said Michelle Levi, a spokesperson for Greens Farms Academy. “We are placing the employee on leave and will be promptly investigating this matter and taking appropriate action.”
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Westport Police Capt. David Wolf told the Courant that, at this time, the department is aware of the Project Veritas report but there is no active investigation related to this matter. The Courant is not naming the teacher as they have not been charged with any criminal wrongdoing.
Project Veritas, described as a far right-wing activist group, was created by conservative James O’Keefe in 2011. The group is often accused of producing deceptively edited videos of its undercover operations, which use secret recordings. Critics have stated that the nonprofit employs highly deceptive editing to attack targets such as teachers’ unions.
Project Veritas says it is dedicated to exposing corruption, dishonesty, waste, fraud and other misconduct “to achieve a more ethical and transparent society.”