FORMER GOP AIDE ACCUSED OF STAGING AN AMBUSH WITH ZIP TIES, SLASH MARKS & POLITICAL SLOGANS
Federal prosecutors have charged 26-year-old Natalie Greene—formerly an aide to Rep. Jeff Van Drew—with orchestrating a fake, politically themed assault on herself. Reportedly bound with zip ties and marked with the slur “TRUMP WHORE,” the incident is now described as a hoax. She faces up to a decade in prison upon conviction.
Federal authorities allege that Natalie Greene, a former staffer for New Jersey Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew, staged a violent assault on herself on July 23 2025. Greene claimed she was attacked by three men who tied her up, slashed her body and wrote political slurs—only for investigators to say the plot was manufactured.
According to court documents, Greene allegedly paid a body-modification artist about $500 to carve cuts into her face, neck and back hours before the incident. Evidence further suggests she purchased the same style of zip ties used to bind her—some found in her own car.
When investigators arrived at the scene in a nature preserve in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, they found Greene bound with her shirt pulled over her head, numerous wounds, and messages such as “TRUMP WHORE” and “Van Drew is racist” written on her body. Her and her accomplice’s stories quickly diverged under FBI questioning.
Greene now faces federal charges: conspiracy to convey false statements and making false statements to federal law enforcement officers. Each charge carries up to five years, meaning a combined maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Her former employer, Rep. Van Drew’s office, issued a statement saying they were “deeply saddened” and were no longer associated with her. Greene was released on a $200,000 unsecured bond and her legal team has not yet entered a plea.
The case underscores the political risks and social impact of alleged hoaxes tied to partisan narratives. As investigators dissect the evidence, the broader questions remain: what motivated the alleged scheme, and what consequences will it carry for political discourse and trust in genuine attacks?
