A former British policeman is using his Scotland Yard training to help the Birthers, a group of conspiracy theorists, in trying to unseat President Barack Obama.
From The Telegraph
Neil Sankey, who has almost 20 years experience serving in Special Branch and the Bomb Squad, is now devoting his energies to proving that Mr Obama is not a natural born US citizen. He joined the Birthers after meeting Orly Taitz, one of the leaders of the group, which disputes Mr Obama’s claim that he was born in Hawaii.
Over the past year, Mr Sankey has been integral in some of the most aggressive efforts to remove him from office by claiming that his presidency is illegitimate.
He tried to block Obama's inauguration last year by contacting all 538 electoral college representatives who formally elect the president.
Mr Sankey has also carried out an investigation into Mr Obama's personal identification history which he claims shows a suspicious number of social security numbers
He has refuted allegations that his attempts are racially motivated, claiming that he disagrees with Mr Obama’s politics and is convinced that he is not genuine.
Mr Sankey, who moved to California in the 1980s to set up his own private detective agency, told the Guardian: “The objection is not Obama's colour but his politics.
“I like him as a person, I just wish he was genuine.
“It's quite obvious to me — America is heading towards a socialised state just as has happened in Europe. Socialised medicine, everyone on the dole, and when everything collapses you tip the scales into Marxism."
Mr Sankey joined Hampshire Police in 1961 before being seconded as a detective sergeant to Scotland Yard. During the 1970s he tracked left wing political groups and the IRA. He became a naturalised American in 1985.
He believes that his British police training is proving crucial to the work he is now pursuing for the Birthers. He said he uses the same techniques he employed to analyse the IRA's associations, to trace Mr Obama’s past.
Taitz added: “He has had superb training. I have the greatest respect for Scotland Yard.”
Most recently, Mr Sankey carried out a search of databases that he claims produced 140 different identification numbers and addresses for "Barack Obama". He admits the findings prove nothing — there is nothing to link the entries to the president — but he believes it raises further doubts that need investigating.
He told the Guardian that his fascination with Mr Obama’s heritage began with the realisation "that this man wasn't what he said he was. He wasn't an ordinary Democrat — he was far more extreme than that."
During the 2008 US presidential election, rumours began to circulate on the internet that Barack Obama had not been born in the US, and was therefore not eligible for the presidency.
Mr Obama's campaign rebutted the claims, publishing his birth certificate proving that he was born in Hawaii, however, conspiracy theorists have dismissed it as a forgery.
Doubters believe that Mr Obama was born in Kenya and that he cannot be president because the US constitution states that "no person except a natural born citizen... shall be eligible to the office of President".
