Robert O’Neill, the decorated former Navy SEAL credited with killing al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is suing two podcasters for $25 million, alleging they repeatedly spread false claims that he lied about his role in the 2011 mission.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in Westchester County Supreme Court, names Tyler Hoover and Brent Tucker of Antihero Broadcast, who O’Neill claims began publicly questioning his account in 2023. According to court papers, the podcasters sought attention and clicks for their YouTube channel, which has roughly 120,000 subscribers.
During a 2023 episode, Tucker reportedly said, “Besides the Rob O’Neill who didn’t kill bin Laden… it is the worst-kept secret in all of special ops,” suggesting O’Neill’s account was false. The podcasters have repeatedly claimed that O’Neill exaggerated his role in Operation Neptune’s Spear.
O’Neill, 49, was a member of SEAL Team Six during the mission on May 2, 2011, and, according to the lawsuit, was personally responsible for the shots that killed bin Laden. Retired Admiral William H. McRaven, who led the operation, has corroborated O’Neill’s account.
“I killed Osama bin Laden,” O’Neill told The Post. “What [Tucker and Hoover] are saying is not true at all.”
The podcasters continued making similar claims in 2024 and 2025, with Hoover and Tucker suggesting O’Neill had downplayed the mission or altered his story over time. The lawsuit alleges these statements are defamatory and have caused O’Neill reputational and financial harm, including a decrease in speaking engagements, psychological stress, and embarrassment.
O’Neill, a New York resident who retired from the Navy in 2012 after 16 years of service, has since become a public speaker and entrepreneur, including launching leadership programs and a business selling cannabis products. The lawsuit states that any proceeds from the case will be donated to help veterans with PTSD.
“Vet-on-vet attacks should be handled privately, not publicly,” O’Neill said. “I would like to set a precedent that this type of public defamation among veterans should stop.”
Hoover and Tucker did not respond to requests for comment.