He Blew the Whistle on DOGE. Then His Brakes Were Cut
3 hours ago
- #DOGE
- #Elon Musk
- #whistleblower
- On April 14, 2025, Dan Berulis, an IT staffer at the NLRB, filed a Congressional whistleblower complaint alleging that DOGE compromised and exfiltrated NLRB data and that there were login attempts from a Russian IP after DOGE accessed the data.
- DOGE teams, orchestrated by Elon Musk, were operating across government with little oversight. Berulis went public with his claims via NPR and later reported receiving a threatening note with drone photos.
- Berulis filed a defamation lawsuit against Musk on April 17, alleging Musk falsely claimed his whistleblower report was fake, increasing his risk of harm, and the complaint was initially filed under seal due to Berulis' security clearance.
- On April 20, 2025, Berulis' car brake lines were cut after he left his house, causing an accident. He found the car's safety sensor tampered, and fingerprints were found on the car, but the police case became inactive due to lack of suspect information.
- Musk reshared a post on April 19 claiming DOGE was cleared and that filing a false whistleblower claim is a crime, which led to replies demanding Berulis be prosecuted or harmed.
- Berulis reported Musk's post to X's trust and safety team but was told it didn't violate policies. He moved out of his home after the incident and has stayed low.
- Responses from figures like Alexander Muse claim NLRB officials denied DOGE access and that the OIG closed an investigation, but Berulis' spokesperson clarified timelines and noted an ongoing GAO report mentions an OIG investigation into DOGE's alleged unlawful access.
- Berulis aims through the lawsuit to shed light on Musk's role with DOGE and support other whistleblowers, hoping to help others despite the asymmetry in facing Musk.