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Connor Plunkett

@conplnk.bsky.social

Investigator @bellingcat.com Signal username: conp.121

348 Followers  |  91 Following  |  8 Posts  |  Joined: 01.03.2024  |  1.6944

Latest posts by conplnk.bsky.social on Bluesky

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Russia’s Smuggled Grain Finds New Market in Saudi Arabia - bellingcat New grain route identified from sanctioned Crimean port that Russia is eyeing in latest peace deal.

An investigation by Bellingcat and Lloyd’s List found that Saudi Arabia joined the countries importing grain directly from a sanctioned port in occupied Crimea. Meanwhile Russia attempts to secure recognition of the Ukrainian territory via a US-led peace plan. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/12...

12.12.2025 13:02 β€” πŸ‘ 204    πŸ” 103    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 12
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β€œDigging for Gold in Import-Export Data” with Bellingcat's Katherine de Tolly | Podcast Episode on RSS.com In the final Stage Talk of the year, we learnt the mechanics of investigating trade data thanks to this week's guest, Bellingcat research consultant and self-confessed data nerd Katherine de Tolly. Us...

How do investigators turn raw trade data into real stories?
Bellingcat’s Katherine de Tolly uncovers hidden supply chains, red flags in import-export records, and key pitfalls in trade-data investigations.
Search 'Stage Talks with Bellingcat' on podcast platforms: rss.com/podcasts/bel...

09.12.2025 10:11 β€” πŸ‘ 104    πŸ” 25    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Fetisov Journalism Awards Journalism’s richest prize, celebrating world class reporting in a global campaign for public interest news and information

Thrilled that our @bellingcat.com investigation "Unmasking MrDeepFakes" has been shortlisted in the 2025 Fetisov Journalism Awards (Contribution to Civil Rights category). In collaboration with @tjekdet.dk, @politiken.dk & the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
fjawards.com/events/%2Fsh...

07.12.2025 14:48 β€” πŸ‘ 58    πŸ” 16    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1
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Mali Under Siege: Tracking the Fuel Blockade Crippling Bamako - bellingcat Attacks by a jihadist group on fuel convoys bound for Bamako, the capital of Mali, have destroyed more than 130 tankers since September, a Bellingcat investigation has found.Β  The systematic attacks b...

Life in Bamako, the capital of Mali, has been brought to a standstill after a jihadist organisation launched a series of attacks on inbound fuel convoys. Bellingcat has verified six attacks since September, which together have damaged more than 130 fuel tankers. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/12...

03.12.2025 09:51 β€” πŸ‘ 91    πŸ” 43    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 3

This and Ireland's performance last week, feels like the 90s again 🀩

19.11.2025 13:54 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
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Ireland winning goal and end of match with Irish commentary

16.11.2025 16:30 β€” πŸ‘ 1345    πŸ” 332    πŸ’¬ 35    πŸ“Œ 123
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Building on Ruins: The Russification of Mariupol, One Apartment Block at a Time - bellingcat Bellingcat has identified 23 multi-storey housing complexes being built in occupied Mariupol and advertised for sale to Russian citizens.

Streets have been renamed, Ukrainian monuments removed, and murals painted over. Bellingcat investigates how apartment blocks in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol have been demolished to make way for a new Russian suburban utopia… www.bellingcat.com/uncategorize...

14.11.2025 11:18 β€” πŸ‘ 430    πŸ” 213    πŸ’¬ 14    πŸ“Œ 22
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FBI Tries to Unmask Owner of Infamous Archive.is Site The FBI has subpoenaed the domain registrar of archive.today, demanding information about the owner.

The FBI has subpoenaed the domain registrar of archive.today, demanding information about the owner.

www.404media.co/fbi-tries-to...

07.11.2025 06:49 β€” πŸ‘ 17    πŸ” 13    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 3
Mapping Midway Blitz in Illinois
YouTube video by Bellingcat Mapping Midway Blitz in Illinois

We mapped Operation Midway Blitz in Illinois with @evidentmedia.org.
A federal judge will hold a hearing today (November 5th) on whether a temporary restraining order restricting crowd-control tactics in Illinois should be converted into a preliminary injunction.
youtube.com/shorts/HKXEY...

05.11.2025 17:40 β€” πŸ‘ 170    πŸ” 67    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 1
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Tear Gas, Pepper Balls Among Weapons Deployed Against Illinois Protesters A judge recently issued a restraining order on crowd-control tactics by federal agents in the state, including those involved in Operation Midway Blitz.

New from Bellingcat: β€œβ€˜Pattern of Extreme Brutality’ β€” Tear gas, pepper balls among weapons used by federal agents at Illinois immigration protests.”
Read the full investigation:
www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/10...

31.10.2025 19:44 β€” πŸ‘ 1216    πŸ” 553    πŸ’¬ 29    πŸ“Œ 38
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The Cocaine Kingpin Living Large in Dubai Daniel Kinahan, an Irish drug dealer, commands a billion-dollar empire from the U.A.E. Why isn’t he in prison?

I wrote about Daniel Kinahan and his family for @newyorker.com. The story features boxers, assassins, Hezbollah, a billion-dollar cocaine empire, the Open University, and a debonair gangster in a prison in Rome who is singing like a canary...
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

20.10.2025 10:02 β€” πŸ‘ 36    πŸ” 9    πŸ’¬ 8    πŸ“Œ 9
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Wildfires Ravage One of Africa’s Largest Nature Reserves - bellingcat Satellite analysis of the Etosha wildfires in Namibia has found that more than a third of the nature reserve was burned.

Satellite analysis by Bellingcat found that wildfires destroyed over a third of Namibia’s most visited wildlife reserve last month, impacting crucial grazing lands for endangered species, including black rhinos and elephants. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/10...

07.10.2025 15:50 β€” πŸ‘ 181    πŸ” 88    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 10

We're happy to see that this important project covering the plight of journalists in Gaza has been recognised with an award. You can read Bellingcat's contribution here, which includes explorable 3D models of Jabalia Refugee Camp and Al-Shati Refugee Camp. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/03...

30.09.2025 16:09 β€” πŸ‘ 252    πŸ” 103    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 2

Our latest on the Kinahan Cartel @conplnk.bsky.social @beaudonelly.bsky.social @johnmooneyirl.bsky.social

27.09.2025 18:18 β€” πŸ‘ 15    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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Australian Cocaine Pilot Killed in Brazil Plane Crash Linked to Kinahan Drug Cartel - bellingcat An Australian pilot who died when his plane crashed in Brazil during a failed drug run has links to an alleged Kinahan cartel associate who is facing drugs charges in Western Australia.

A small plane crashed in Brazil recently; amongst the wreckage was the body of a former Melbourne stockbroker and 200kg of cocaine. Bellingcat and @thetimes.com reveal how the deceased Australian pilot was linked to an associate of the notorious Kinahan cartel: www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/09...

27.09.2025 16:16 β€” πŸ‘ 308    πŸ” 84    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 6

Israeli forces continue to push into Gaza City, but in recent days important historical and cultural sites have also been further damaged by IDF operations across Gaza. Many of these sites held unexplored archaeological data that could now be lost 🧡

19.09.2025 10:28 β€” πŸ‘ 177    πŸ” 78    πŸ’¬ 7    πŸ“Œ 4
How to BUY Drugs online (fast) | frontal
YouTube video by frontal How to BUY Drugs online (fast) | frontal

Our researcher @conplnk.bsky.social appears in this new Frontal video by German broadcaster ZDF discussing our investigation into the networks advertising powerful synthetic opioids to the general public. youtu.be/F7YFeTLBgN8?...

05.09.2025 13:10 β€” πŸ‘ 67    πŸ” 24    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 0
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Bellingcat Council Meeting Transcript Search Find verbatim quotes from council meetings in the UK and Ireland using this free open source research tool by Bellingcat.

Finding key information shared at council meetings takes time and effort. Today, we've launched a tool that allows you to search verbatim quotes from council meetings in the UK and Ireland, without the need to watch long recordings or sift through extensive notes. council-search.bellingcat.com

28.08.2025 16:50 β€” πŸ‘ 268    πŸ” 100    πŸ’¬ 13    πŸ“Œ 22
What is Bellingcat?
YouTube video by Bellingcat What is Bellingcat?

We thought it was time we introduced ourselves...
From a global crisis to an underreported event, we find the facts using publicly available resources. By detailing our methods, we invite you to explore, replicate, and contribute to investigations. Find out more:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyQy...

19.08.2025 09:17 β€” πŸ‘ 298    πŸ” 81    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 3
Dixie Mafia's Texas Millionaire Murders
YouTube video by The Underworld Podcast Dixie Mafia's Texas Millionaire Murders

Our very own @oldpete45.bsky.social appeared on The Underworld Podcast this week discussing his investigation into the cold case murder of a Texas oilman and his circle of gambling, sharpshooting friends. www.youtube.com/watch?v=zS3x...

15.08.2025 17:14 β€” πŸ‘ 58    πŸ” 13    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

In May, we, alongside CBC's Visual Investigation Unit, @tjekdet.dk and @politiken.dk revealed the identity of the key administrator behind one of the largest AI porn sites. Dutch politicians across political parties are now calling for the Canadian to be extradited. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

14.08.2025 09:44 β€” πŸ‘ 175    πŸ” 79    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 3
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LLMs vs. Geolocation: GPT-5 performs worse than other AI models - bellingcat Bellingcat challenged the latest modelsβ€”Grok, GPT and Geminiβ€”on geolocation tasks, revealing GPT-5 as a clear downgrade.

Two months have passed since we last tested AI models against our geolocation skillsets. Within that time more advanced models like GPT-5 and Google AI mode have launched. So @foeke.bsky.social is back again to put the chatbots to work… www.bellingcat.com/resources/20...

14.08.2025 11:28 β€” πŸ‘ 141    πŸ” 46    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 2
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What Can Open Sources Reveal About Beijing’s Deadly Floods? - bellingcat After days of torrential rain and more than 40 people confirmed dead, what can open sources tell us about the damage in China's capital?

More than 40 people have been confirmed dead, and 80,000 residents have been evacuated across Beijing due to widespread flooding. Bellingcat used public sources to begin to track the damage. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/08...

08.08.2025 15:17 β€” πŸ‘ 164    πŸ” 58    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 5

Awesome work by @georgekatz.bsky.social and @conplnk.bsky.social on Chinese fentanyl smuggling networks running out of Japan, who use β€œRussian Doll-like setups involving multiple companies sharing the same contact details, salespeople, advertisements and website layouts.”

07.08.2025 18:44 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Pleased to have our latest piece in collaboration with @nikkei.com finally out. Thanks to @beaudonelly.bsky.social @conplnk.bsky.social and @merelzoet.bsky.social

07.08.2025 15:19 β€” πŸ‘ 11    πŸ” 9    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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A Chinese Fentanyl Smuggling Network’s Footprints in Japan - bellingcat Bellingcat, in collaboration with the Japanese newspaper Nikkei, uncovered a Chinese fentanyl smuggling network's operations in Japan.

Bellingcat, in collaboration with @nikkei.com, uncovered a Chinese fentanyl smuggling network’s operations in Japan. Read our full investigation here: www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/08...

07.08.2025 13:54 β€” πŸ‘ 192    πŸ” 80    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 4

Sadly new SkySat imagery from @planet.com shows that even more graves at the Commonwealth Gaza War Cemetery ran by @cwgc.bsky.social have been destroyed by the IDF. Parts of Sections A, B, XXV, XVII, XVIII and XXVI appear to have been completely bulldozed with the creation of dirt berms on July 27.

01.08.2025 20:16 β€” πŸ‘ 69    πŸ” 40    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 2
A July 26 SkySat image from Planet Labs showing a large crowd of Palestinians visible around an aid convoy in southern Gaza. There are enough people in the crowd to make it very easily visible in the satellite imagery. There's a large amount of destruction in the area and an IDF outpost is nearby.

A July 26 SkySat image from Planet Labs showing a large crowd of Palestinians visible around an aid convoy in southern Gaza. There are enough people in the crowd to make it very easily visible in the satellite imagery. There's a large amount of destruction in the area and an IDF outpost is nearby.

A massive crowd of Palestinians surrounding aid trucks is visible in July 26 SkySat imagery from @planet.com near the so-called Morag Corridor at 31.3104, 34.2822 in southern Gaza.

July 26 video from Ibrahim Alsallout on Instagram showed the crowd from the ground: www.instagram.com/p/DMkmVvNo6n...

28.07.2025 17:12 β€” πŸ‘ 174    πŸ” 77    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 8
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Episode 307: Five Stars (3.7.2025) β€œChristopher Kinahan is probably the most successful and entrepreneurial criminal that Ireland has ever produced.”

This is probably my favorite coverage of our @conplnk.bsky.social @johnmooneyirl.bsky.social @beaudonelly.bsky.social story about Christopher Kinahan’s online habits so far. Phoebe Judge and co. are some of the best crime podcasters out there week after week: thisiscriminal.com/episode-307-...

25.07.2025 23:44 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Masked, Armed, Forceful: Finding Patterns in California Immigration Raids
YouTube video by Evident Media Masked, Armed, Forceful: Finding Patterns in California Immigration Raids

Together with partners at @bellingcat.com and @calmatters.org we collected videos of over 100 incidents of DHS operations between June 6 and June 30, picking out what appear to be recurring trends and tactics used by officers in and around Los Angeles.
youtu.be/6BuxaVdv7po?...

08.07.2025 20:09 β€” πŸ‘ 58    πŸ” 32    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 2

@conplnk is following 20 prominent accounts