FACT CHECK: No, The US Military Has Not Arrested Eight Of The 100 Intelligence Officials Fired By Tulsi Gabbard

A post shared on Facebook claims eight of the 100 intelligence officers recently fired by Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard have purportedly been arrested by the U.S. military.

Verdict: False

The claim is false and originally stems from a Feb. 27 article published on the satire site “Real Raw News.” A spokesperson for the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General (JAG)’s Corps denied the claim’s validity in an email to Check Your Fact.

Fact Check:

Gabbard said President Donald Trump’s first Cabinet meeting was marked by a “high level of energy,” according to Fox News. Gabbard also said Trump’s Cabinet is “full of great Americans who are dedicated to serving our country and the American people,” the outlet reported.

The Facebook post claims eight of the 100 intelligence officials recently fired by Gabbard have purportedly been arrested by the U.S. military. According to the same post, the intelligence officials allegedly embedded a cipher within “racy messages” in internal government chat rooms run by the National Security Agency (NSA) threatening to undermine Trump. The post further claims that the eight officials remain in Navy JAG holding cells ahead of their purported trials.

The claim is false and originally stems from a Feb. 27 article published on the satire site “Real Raw News.” A “Disclaimer” included on the site’s “About Us” page indicates its content is not meant to be taken literally. “Information on this website is for informational and educational and entertainment purposes. This website contains humor, parody, and satire. We have included this disclaimer for our protection, on the advice [of] legal counsel,” the disclaimer reads.

Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find the claim referenced on Navy JAG’s website or its verified social media accounts. In addition, neither Gabbard nor Trump appears to have publicly commented on the claim. The NSA has not addressed the claim, either. Check Your Fact also did not find any credible news reports to support the claim. (RELATED: Trump Post About Oregon Governor Fake)

Furthermore, a spokesperson for Navy JAG denied the claim’s validity in an email to Check Your Fact.

“This is not true,” the spokesperson said of the claim.

Although the claim is false, Gabbard did recently fire more than 100 intelligence officers from 15 agencies for using a government chat platform to discuss topics, including gender transition surgery, according to NBC News.