Home of Terminated Covid-19 Data Scientist Raided by Florida Law Enforcers

Around ten Florida police officers raided the home of former data scientist, Rebekah Jones, on Monday morning, due to an investigation arising from a security breach in the Departments of Health’s messaging alert system. According to the investigator, the messages were sent to around 1,750 recipients last November 10 urging them to disclose about the coronavirus deaths. The officials tracing the message were led to an IP address connected to Jones’ house. Jones posted a video on Twitter showing an officer pointing his gun at her husband and 2 children, ages 11 and 2 years old, who were up a stairwell at that time. She also mentioned that the other officers pointed a gun six inches from her face while seizing her computers, hard drives and phone. Jones denied the allegation. The data scientist was terminated in May for allegedly refusing to manipulate Covid-19 stats.

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CNN: Jones said that the officer was pointing his gun at her 2-year-old daughter, 11-year-old son and her husband

Screenshot from CNN

In an interview by CNN, former data scientist Rebekah Jones disclosed that about 10 officers with guns drawn showed up to her Tallahassee home around 8:30 a.m. A video taken from a camera in her house, which she posted on social media, showed an officer pointing a gun up a stairwell as Jones told him her two children were upstairs. Jones said that the officer was pointing his gun at her 2-year-old daughter, 11-year-old son and her husband, who she said were in the stairwell, although the video doesn’t make that clear.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement executed a search warrant Monday morning at the home of data scientist Rebekah Jones, who was fired by the state Department of Health in May. The agency is investigating whether Jones accessed a state government messaging system without authorization to urge employees to speak out about coronavirus deaths, according to an affidavit by an agent working on the case.

Officials traced the message, which was sent on the afternoon of November 10 to about 1,750 recipients, to an IP address connected to Jones’ house, the investigator wrote in the affidavit.

Jones told CNN on Monday night that she didn’t send the message.