Car salesman becomes amateur ISIS investigator, goes to jail

Tony Lopez went from being a successful Toyota salesman in Delaware to becoming obsessed with tracking down ISIS online. His fixation eventually led him to 14 months in prison for allegedly threatening an FBI agent. Now, the United States attorney's office in Delaware has dropped the charges, and The New York Times tells Lopez's fascinating story of how his good intentions put him behind bars.

In 2014, Lopez heard on CNN that ISIS had an active presence on Twitter, and he wanted to know more. He found the group's members on the popular social media outlet, and at first he merely insulted them. But Lopez slowly became obsessed to the point he left his job at the Toyota dealer.

Lopez even started talking over Skype with someone who claimed to be an ISIS military commander, and that was when the situation really got out of hand. As The New York Times reports, this person was more likely someone in Scandinavia who liked to pose as the leader. Lopez began to think he could use the contact to save hostages and began speaking with the FBI. He became more frantic as time passed and started sending more argumentative emails to an agent.

The FBI eventually arrested Lopez and the situation got even worse. Two psychological evaluations reported he was making up the whole story. Finally, a third doctor looked at the data and said Lopez wasn't crazy. The New York Times' story shows the dangers of obsession, and it's well worth a read.
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