The former Navy SEAL who took credit for firing the shots that killed terrorist Osama bin Laden was arrested Wednesday in Frisco, Texas.
The Dallas Morning News reported that Robert J. O’Neill, 47, was taken into custody by law enforcement. He was hit with a Class A misdemeanor charge of assault causing bodily injury and a Class C misdemeanor charge of public intoxication.
However, Collin County records reportedly only confirm the assault charge against O’Neill. He was released on $3,500 bond on Wednesday.
Reports claim the former SEAL was there to record a podcast for a local cigar lounge. O’Neill has encountered legal and other troubles in the past, including a 2016 arrest in Montana for drunk driving. He is originally from the state.
Those charges were later dropped when prosecutors found he was on prescription medication treating a condition that began during his time with the Navy.
Then in 2020 he was banned from Delta Airlines for refusing to wear a mask when it was mandated during the pandemic. O’Neill reportedly removed his facemask during a Delta flight and made headlines for his resistance.
Robert O’Neill, former Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden arrested in Texas ..https://t.co/TqRt1PBsZV
— Papa Hemingway (@PopHemingway) August 27, 2023
Terrorist and 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden was killed in the military’s “Operation Neptune Spear” on May 2, 2011. In 2014, former SEAL Team 6 member O’Neill claimed that he fired the shots that ended bin Laden’s life.
That assertion has neither been confirmed or denied by the U.S. government, though other sources disputed it. Some claimed the terrorist was already dead when O’Neill arrived.
Matt Bissonnette, a fellow Seal Team 6 member, wrote that another man in the operation shot and killed bin Laden.
Whatever the truth is, O’Neill is a highly decorated veteran of an elite squad that took out public enemy number one. He is the recipient of two Silver Stars, four Bronze Stars and a Joint Service Commendation Medal for his years in the military.
He wrote a memoir, “The Operator,” about his military service.
The New York Post reached out to O’Neill for a comment on his arrest but did not receive a reply.
