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Michael Sheldon

@michaelsheldon.bsky.social
13K followers 107 following 45 posts

Senior Investigator @ CIR Formerly: Bellingcat, DFRLab

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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Tristan Lee @tristanl.ee · 10/06/2025
Similarly, "bean bag rounds" are typically filled with lead shot, not plastic. They can fracture your skull and kill you. After I got hit with one in 2020 (thankfully in the leg), an Austin Police Department officer acted surprised there was metal inside.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
I just learned that callsign "white" (Белый), the commander of the Akhmat unit who in the summer of 2022 "castrated" and murdered a Ukrainian POW, has been reported dead. Happy Vyshyvanka Day.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
What a steal!
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 18/04/2025
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Aric Toler @aric.bsky.social · 10/03/2025
Over at Bellingcat, they're hiring a researcher/trainer who can focus on conflict research. Fully remote, with occasional travel to workshops, conferences, etc. Pay is between 60-73k USD. www.bellingcat.com/bellingcat-i...
bellingcat.com
Bellingcat is Hiring: Open Source Investigator and Trainer (Conflict) - bellingcat
Bellingcat is hiring an open source investigator and trainer (conflict). Find out more about the role and apply within.
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Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 06/03/2025
In our latest investigation, we identify the former Wagner fighter and admin of a racist Telegram group behind a Russian fashion brand that sells clothing items glorifying far-right ideology and the Russian mercenary group Wagner. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/03...
bellingcat.com
Unmasking Maskov: How Bellingcat Found a Man Outfitting Russian Neo-Nazis - bellingcat
H8Core is a Russian fashion brand that sells clothing items glorifying far-right ideology and the Russian mercenary group Wagner. Its products – which include t-shirts, caps and hoodies – have been cr...
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ruslanleviev.cit.ngo @ruslanleviev.cit.ngo · 04/03/2025
Three years ago, on this day, Russia introduced a new article into its Criminal Code: the dissemination of “fake news” about the Russian army. On that very day, I left my country, and the next day, law enforcement officers came to my home in Moscow to arrest me. 1/2
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Dmitri. #freeLink @momus.bsky.social · 22/02/2025
you can just make out the duct tape on the rear of the drone in the CPAC photograph over the control surfaces. it's hiding the caution warnings in russian (не браться -- do not remove) that would leave no doubt as to where it came from
rear of the captured drone on the CPAC stage with white haired white dudesimilar drone on the ground captured in Vinnitsa by Ukrainian armed forces with two soldiers examining it
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
If only there was something else Shaheds were better known for.
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Centre for Information Resilience @cen4infores.bsky.social · 19/12/2024
Is Russia executing captured Ukrainian soldiers? The numbers have surged in recent months. In our new documentary, we show how each of the 80 deaths we've logged could potentially amount to a war crime. Watch the film here: youtu.be/eik1Lf0dPTg
youtu.be
Is Russia executing captured Ukrainian soldiers?
YouTube video by CIR - Centre for Information Resilience
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Centre for Information Resilience @cen4infores.bsky.social · 19/12/2024
"In a barren field, seven unarmed soldiers emerge from a dugout at gunpoint, arms raised above their heads. Some of them appear to trip and fall as they climb out of the ditch and are ordered to lie face down..." 🔽 80 Executions (7 min read)
info-res.org
Videos show alleged Ukrainian prisoners of war executed by Russian soldiers - Centre for Information Resilience
Multiple videos show the men’s last moments, as they kneel or lie on the ground with their hands on their heads or behind their backs.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 08/11/2024
Tyva seems to heavily favor corrupt officials over war criminals.
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Aric Toler @aric.bsky.social · 08/11/2024
In 2022, we put out a report on Bellingcat about Ochur-Suge Mongush, who joined "Akhmat." He was filmed sexually assaulting and murdering a Ukrainian POW. www.bellingcat.com/news/2022/08... A video surfaced of him complaining about not getting free land from the state. t.me/ne_zhdi_novo...
bellingcat.com
Tracking the Faceless Killers who Mutilated and Executed a Ukrainian POW - bellingcat
In a series of gruesome videos, a man wearing a cowboy hat mutilates a Ukrainian prisoner of war before murdering him. Open source evidence suggests the involvement of a Chechen-led paramilitary group...
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 02/10/2024
In awe at how lame Redut medals are
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 26/02/2024
In a special free edition of our Bellingchat Premium podcast, we talk about covering the invasion of Ukraine using open sources with Bellingcat researcher @michaelsheldon.bsky.social and the @nytimes.com Visual Investigations Reporter @aric.bsky.social. Listen in on the link below! 👇
patreon.com
Investigating the Invasion of Ukraine Using Open Sources | Bellingcat
Get more from Bellingcat on Patreon
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 23/01/2024
An image analysis by Bellingcat shows an infamous Russian neo-Nazi with ties to the controversial paramilitary Wagner Group may be depicted in a photograph showing a man holding a severed head in Syria... www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/01...
bellingcat.com
The Man in the Matching Uniform: Investigating a Rusich Atrocity in Syria - bellingcat
A faceless man poses with a severed head in the desert. The very same uniform was worn by an infamous Russian neo-Nazi who was seen in the same area.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 23/01/2024
Read my latest for @bellingcat.com The Man in the Matching Uniform: Investigating a Rusich Atrocity in Syria www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/01...
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 15/01/2024
Put it into Google Earth to get a sense of where the remaining flights may have headed.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 15/01/2024
Tracing the video from t.me/CinCAFU/648 gives a slightly better overview of what's what in a pretty chaotic radar image. From my understanding, the green track appears to be the A-50, and blue would likely be the IL-22 heading to emergency land at Anapa.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 14/01/2024
Western battery hanging out in the same spots.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 12/01/2024
Neat.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 09/01/2024
Looks like the Stroitel S-400 unit recently moved from its usual fields to a different location to the south-west. Snow cover makes the individual components visible even in lower-resolution satellites.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 28/11/2023
The new Wagner x Stone Island collab is crazy.
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 15/11/2023
Bellingcat contributor Ollie Ballinger developed a tool to estimate damage in Ukraine. He has now repurposed the tool to estimate the number of damaged buildings and the likely affected population in a given area within the Gaza Strip. www.bellingcat.com/resources/20...
bellingcat.com
A New Tool Allows Researchers to Track Damage in Gaza  - bellingcat
Using methodology originally developed and applied to the Ukraine conflict, the tool helps asses damage in the Palestinian Territory.
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Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 13/11/2023
Over late October and early November, military cargo flights in and out of Kaliningrad were at an uncharacteristic high. Bellingcat went to investigate what these flights could be moving using SAR imagery… www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...
bellingcat.com
As Cargo Flights Leave Kaliningrad, Air Defence Systems Disappear - bellingcat
Satellite imagery shows that S-400 anti-air systems have been removed from Russia's Kaliningrad Region.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 11/11/2023
For the past week I've been monitoring Sentinel-1 imagery for S-400 sites in Kaliningrad, some of which appear to have been at least partially vacated. We have an article in the works that will go into more detail.
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Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 02/11/2023
Equatorial Guinea claims to use a luxury yacht for military operations, but why? New Bellingcat researcher @oldpete45.bsky.social investigates the use and movement of this extravagant vessel: www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...
bellingcat.com
Public Holidays: Equatorial Guinea’s Vice President Insists Superyacht in Italian Vacation Hotspot...
The 'defence ministry' yacht was seen moored off Capri, Sardinia and a number of touristic hotspots in the Mediterranean.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 02/11/2023
"for participation in the Bakhmut meatgrinder"
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Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 01/11/2023
In North-east Nigeria one young man’s execution-style killing is captured on camera. Here’s how Bellingcat and Reuters traced the young man in blue shorts to find out where he was killed www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...
bellingcat.com
The Young Man in The Blue Shorts: Execution-Style Killing Inside a Nigerian Military Barracks  - be...
Footage showed the killing of a young man at an unknown location; we tracked it down to a Military Barracks in Nigeria.
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 24/10/2023
When the US Department of Defense published a video seemingly showing a UFO in the Middle East, Bellingcat contributor Nathan Patin and data scientist Logan Williams went to work using open-source techniques to verify claims of the unidentified flying object.
bellingcat.com
Isn’t That A Balloon? Deflating a DoD UFO Video - bellingcat
A closer look at July 2022 footage of an unidentified anomalous phenomenon suggests a more banal explanation. It may just be a balloon.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 23/10/2023
Not something you see every day. A Russian soldier with a thermobaric TBG-7VL round (thanks @godin.bsky.social for the ID). Presumably summer 2023 in Zaporizhia oblast.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 07/09/2023
Playing around with S1 large scale change detection on Burevestnik AB. Displayed are composites of the mean S1 returns over 180-day periods starting at January 2022 and 2023, respectively.
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Reposted by Michael Sheldon
Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 07/09/2023
After a photo was posted on Telegram on Monday apparently showing the disgraced Russian General Sergey Surovikin- open source researchers hurried to geolocate it. The general’s whereabouts have been unclear since a June falling out with the Kremlin. www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/09...
bellingcat.com
Geolocating Russia’s Disgraced General Surovikin - bellingcat
After his mysterious disappearance, a photo has surfaced appearing to show the general ‘alive and well’. Here’s how we geolocated it outside an elite Moscow restaurant.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 07/09/2023
Looking at the S-300V4 site at Burevestnik AB, which was recently reported to have been moved off the Kuril Islands. The systems are clearly visible in Google Earth imagery dating to early August 2022. english.kyodonews.net/news/2023/08...
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 04/09/2023
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 29/08/2023
While at the Chekalov funeral today, Fontanka took pictures of graves visited by Wagner affiliates with red roses. They recognized one convicted criminal by the name of Andrei Levandovsky among the graves. t.me/fontankaspb/...
t.me
Фонтанка SPB Online
Шесть имён с надгробий, у которых теперь лежат букеты красных роз, нашел корреспондент Фонтанка.ру Об этих па...
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 28/08/2023
Stroitel site. Aug 22 vs 27.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 28/08/2023
Sheino site. Aug 22 vs 26.
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Bellingcat @bellingcat.com · 21/08/2023
Russia’s operation to smuggle grain from occupied Ukraine is evolving. A new investigation by Bellingcat, @scrippsnews.bsky.social & Lloyds List has tracked ships taking grain from Crimea direct to Iran. Grain exports have also begun from other occupied ports
bellingcat.com
Russia’s Ghost Ships and the Evolution of a Grain Smuggling Operation - bellingcat
Russia’s tactics to export grain from occupied Ukraine are evolving, including a new direct export route to southern Iran.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 21/08/2023
I was looking around Luhansk obl on Google earth and noticed updated imagery from 2022. You can now see the trench in Privyllia where a Ukrainian POW was tortured, executed, and discarded by Russian forces in summer last year.
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Attacks on Civilians with Small Drones: A Global Picture @littleflyingrobots.bsky.social · 17/08/2023
Starting from the beginning of Russian drone-buying volunteers Katya and Valya's big trip to China...on 8/12/23, they arrived in Beijing and mentioned new Chinese export restrictions, loopholes, and exchange rate issues. t.me/katya_valya_dnr/3418
Good morning, our relatives 🥰

On the weekend, we’ll take a little 🤏 walk around Beijing and fly to another city, for the sake of which we started the trip.

The bans about which they write so much (we are talking about quadrocopters) will really come into force soon, loopholes will still be found and there is a huge problem with the exchange rate - today the dollar is 100, and the yuan has grown the same way in 3 days. Of course, the final cost in Russia, especially through outbids, will be simply unrealistic.

We do our best to use the collected funds to bring as much as possible.Доброе утро, родные наши 🥰

В выходные дни чуть 🤏 прогуляемся по Пекину и улетаем в другой город, ради которого мы и затеяли поездку. 

Запреты о которых так много пишут ( речь о квадрокоптерах )действительно скоро вступят в силу, лазейки все равно найдутся и огромная проблема с курсом - сегодня доллар 100, и юань на глазах за 3 дня вырос так же. Конечно же конечная стоимость в России, особенно через перекупов будет просто нереальная. 

Делаем все, чтобы на собранные средства могли привозить как можно больше.
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Michael Sheldon @michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 11/08/2023
One of my favorite lazy open source activities is looking for new air defense locations near Belgorod. Because S-300/400 are made up of so many large vehicles, they're easily recognizable even on Sentinel-1 and 2 imagery. Particularly since they rarely go very far from previous sites.
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