Three new evidentiary categories fundamentally change the network analysis: the Wire Backup “Axis of QAnon” group, the August 2024 WhatsApp exchange, and the VelvetBlade–Dilley private DMs.
Nov 13–16, 2021: Claudia Tietze / Farallon named as active participant alongside Laura Dilley, William Welna, and Arturo Tafoyovsky.
Aug 12, 2024: Dilley says she was meeting with Farallon, helping with a presentation and giving feedback.
Oct 27–28, 2023: private X DM screenshots show narrative management, social strategy, and adversary handling.
Every claim in this deck carries a tier tag. The tags are not decoration — they encode the verification status of the underlying source material.
Primary source in hand. Verbatim exports, timestamped screenshots, court filings, WHOIS records. Content quoted from these sources is reproduced exactly, including typos.
Wire backup · WhatsApp export · DM screenshots · arXiv · Michigan Court of Claims
Supported but not self-contained. Inferences drawn from primary sources, secondary reporting, structural patterns, and timing correlations. Stated as analysis, never as documented fact.
State News reporting · network position analysis · timeline correlation
Open question. Identity attributions, corporate structures, and relationships not yet established to a publishable standard. These are flagged as gaps, not asserted.
VelvetBlade legal name · Erie identity · Farallon LLC incorporation · Laura Array structure
Corporate profile, opacity indicators, and the Wire “Axis of QAnon” operational evidence.
Identity, the Dilley–Tietze hierarchy, and the Welna disavowal in Wire context.
Private DM record, the confidant-to-attacker pipeline, and the identity question.
Hub-node structure across Wire and Twitter; organic cluster vs. amplification.
Rauhauser era vs. Farallon era; the Mensch parallel; Dave Troy proximity.
The Cullen Hoback reference, updated network map, chronology, and the six remaining verification gaps.
navigate: scroll · ←/→ or ↑/↓ arrow keys · rail on the left
Claudia Tietze / Farallon was a named, active participant in the Wire research group alongside Laura Dilley, William Welna, and Arturo Tafoyovsky. This group, which literally named itself “Axis of QAnon,” was the operational incubator for the QAnon paper published on arXiv in July 2022.
Tietze directed research, curated archives, managed Dilley’s PR, and coordinated investigative targets within this group. This is no longer “plausible adjacency” — it is documented operational collaboration.
Laura Dilley tells Arturo in a casual message: “I was just meeting with Farallon, helping her with a presentation, giving feedback.” When Arturo asks whether Tietze dislikes him, Dilley replies: “She likes you fine. She never said she doesn’t like you!”
This confirms the Farallon–Dilley working relationship was ongoing and active at least through August 2024 — nearly three years after first contact and ten months after the Arturo–Dilley separation.
Screenshots from inside X’s DM interface confirm VelvetBlade and Laura Dilley have an established private relationship in which VelvetBlade actively advises Dilley on narrative management, social media strategy, and how to handle perceived adversaries — including Arturo.
The exchange includes a degrading sexual comment about a woman Arturo once knew — attribution of that line should be re-verified against the original screenshots before publication.
Corporate profile, public-facing identity, opacity indicators, and new operational evidence from the Wire export.
Farallon, LLC — boutique OSINT consultancy
farallon.io, registered 2023-05-22 via Withheld for Privacy ehf, Iceland / Namecheap
Claudia Tietze — Director / Managing Director / Founder
LinkedIn: /in/supersecretsquirrel
Medium: @farallon
“Part spy, part librarian, and part technologist”; “digital sniper”; former Creative Technologist; certified in forensic psychology, intelligence analysis, and fraud investigations, self-reported with no accredited-institution credentials publicly listed.
No state of LLC incorporation disclosed publicly; no federal contractor filings found; no public client list; no disclosed investors or board.
The Wire backup export dated 2021-11-16T12:11:10.692Z for user Arturo Tafoyovsky @cheshire3301 contains 15 conversations and 377 messages/events. One group channel is named “Axis of QAnon” and contains 308 messages.
Dr. Laura C. Dilley, @laura_greenaura / @ProfDilley
Claudia Tietze, Farallon LLC
Co-author of the QAnon paper, later disavowed
Additional participant, handle not fully resolved in the export
@cheshire3301
Additional peripheral participants
| Timestamp | From | Content |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-11-14 01:50:03 | Farallon | “I don't think these interactions are helpful. Just my two cents.” |
| 2021-11-14 01:51:52 | Farallon | “Not necessarily. Has anyone looked in Suzy's repo?” |
| 2021-11-14 01:52:34 | Farallon | “If I were he I'd put it there” |
| 2021-11-15 06:04:19 | Farallon | “Here. They seem to have deleted the tweets promoting it & asking for money [Tresorit link]” |
| 2021-11-15 06:04:52 | Farallon | “If you can grab it @William Welna I'd love a copy if it scans clean” |
| 2021-11-15 06:23:24 | Farallon | “Send them your 83 papers...” |
| 2021-11-15 06:27:43 | Farallon | “And any interviews you have done. Also... you should do a TedTalk. Not on the paper but maybe on this experience of attempts to silence academia” |
| 2021-11-15 06:28:13 | Farallon | “Or how you stay so chipper and your fav way to make coffee...” |
| 2021-11-15 06:40:50 | Farallon | “Yesterday I could go to Frontiers & search for QAnon. Today it redirects me to a sign in page” |
| 2021-11-15 06:41:23 | Farallon | “Does anyone have the direct url to the abstract handy?” |
| 2021-11-15 06:50:30 | Farallon | “Chad is friendly” |
| 2021-11-15 06:52:26 | Farallon | “@Laura what date did Sean reach out to you?” |
| 2021-11-16 01:07:03 | Farallon | “The abstract was posted October 14 if memory serves? Do you know who you shared it with pre Oct 14 & between 14-18?” |
| 2021-11-16 01:20:05 | Farallon | “Abstract was not posted Oct 15? But Sept 15?” |
| 2021-11-16 09:59:40 | Farallon | “Laura can I post that graphic showing you are kicking ass” ← LAST MESSAGE IN EXPORT |
Tietze’s role is not that of a passive observer or social-media follower. The message pattern shows active research direction, evidence handling, publication timeline management, PR coaching, rapport maintenance, and permission-seeking for promotional content.
Directing investigation: “@Laura, what date did Sean reach out to you?”
Curating and archiving evidence through the Tresorit link to deleted tweets.
Managing the paper’s publication timeline: “Abstract was not posted Oct 15? But Sept 15?”
Coaching Dilley’s public image and media strategy: “you should do a TedTalk... Send them your 83 papers.”
Maintaining cheerful rapport while doing so: “your fav way to make coffee.”
Requesting permission to post promotional content on Dilley’s behalf: the final message.
On August 12, 2024, Laura Dilley messaged Arturo Tafoyovsky via WhatsApp. The exchange confirms the Farallon–Dilley working relationship was ongoing at least through mid-2024.
Nearly 3 years after first documented contact in the Wire group, Nov 2021.
10 months after the Arturo–Dilley separation in October 2023.
Confirms the Farallon–Dilley working relationship was ongoing, active, and operational through mid-2024.
Dilley giving feedback on a Tietze presentation matches the advisory dynamic visible in Wire.
Arturo’s question suggests awareness of possible tension or views about him expressed to Dilley.
“Remember that's when you went to write the book and then those whole feelings started to brew up again”
“Now you want to compete over who gets the best book out, it's just so unfair”
“It's based on my research partially” about a project of Dilley's.
“Were you gonna be able to share the video intro you were making for my QAnon talk at some point?”
As of August 2024, Dilley and Arturo were both independently developing book/media projects about QAnon research that substantially overlap in subject matter — and both knew it. This competitive dynamic between the two researcher-partners, mediated by Tietze as Dilley’s ongoing advisor, provides important context for the escalating public conflicts from late 2024.
Active in the group, involved in evidence archiving and adversarial counter-analysis.
UUID ef4bd3a5 appears in sidebar conversation; mentions a Netflix McAfee documentary, a “$1.2 million lawsuit,” and scheduling a podcast with “Professor Laura” and Arturo — identifying CappyCarlo as a media professional or journalist in the same orbit.
Listed in the Wire TOC with 0 messages. Existed as a contact but no messages in this export window.
Separate 1:1 conversation channel titled “Laura” with 42 messages. Arturo’s private direct Wire with Laura Dilley, separate from the group. Contains the exchange where Arturo shares Twitter API tokens with Laura and intimate messages confirming the romantic relationship.
Wire channel literally titled “Farallon 🦋” with 0 messages in this export window. Confirms Tietze had her own 1:1 Wire channel with Arturo, distinct from the group.
Dr. Laura C. Dilley, Associate Professor, Communicative Sciences & Disorders, Michigan State University. @ProfDilley = @laura_greenaura. PhD MIT/Harvard 2005. Primary research domain: psycholinguistics, prosody, speech perception. The QAnon paper is an outlier in her publication record.
The Wire messages demonstrate a clear asymmetry consistent with what the “Investigating_Network_Connections_and_Control_Dynamics” analytical report calls a “handler-asset dynamic.”
The Wire group shows Welna actively participating in the same research infrastructure as Tietze — he’s in the same group, receiving the same Tresorit archive links from Farallon, and discussing the same investigation targets.
When Welna later says in February 2025 he could “no longer in good faith support or stand by” the work, citing “trolling, lawfare, and surrounding personal relationship issues,” the Wire context suggests he was aware from the beginning that the research was embedded in an active conflict with named adversaries — not purely academic inquiry.
The two screenshot images from August 28, 2024 show Twitter/X Direct Messages between Laura Dilley and VelvetBlade. The DM interface header reads “VelvetBlade 🍺 ●”.
Private DM relationship with Dilley is confirmed by screenshots.
VelvetBlade advises Dilley on narrative management, social media strategy, and handling perceived adversaries.
Messages are from Oct 27–28, 2023, the precise window of the Arturo–Dilley separation.
“Hm. I would say these things prompted it: (1) I already spilled the beans in the interview with Cullen Hoback; (2) My therapist encouraged that I might consider going public with it and that it could be helpful to people; (3) Arturo managed to get some charges to hit my bank account in the last couple days for, of all things, a dating site membership, which just means he continues to prey on women but on my dime. The gall! (I called in the fraudulent charges.)”
“You don't need to address Kaidinn. No one looks except those who know she is batshit. Addressing it at all just spurs her to do it more [twitter.com/laura_greenaur...]”
“Ironically, Arturo doesn't think she's batshit, he always thought she was solid 😂”
“She was a potentially fuckable female so it makes sense”
“Well you know what I think about his discernment between reality & ego” 🔥 [fire emoji reaction]
VelvetBlade is advising Dilley on social media opponents and characterizing a third party using harsh language. This is a trusted advisor relationship, not a public follower.
The allegation that Arturo charged a dating site membership to her account originates in a private DM exchange with VelvetBlade. VelvetBlade was in the loop before it went public.
Dilley delivers a dismissive sexual reduction about a third-party woman. This contrasts with her public presentation as a counter-disinformation academic and feminist-coded political commentator.
VelvetBlade’s closing assessment of Arturo is consistent with the September 2024 public attack tweet. The private framing and public attack are the same voice, same conclusion, 11 months apart.
These DMs are from October 27–28, 2023, the precise window of the Arturo–Dilley separation. VelvetBlade was brought in as confidant and strategic advisor at the moment of breakdown.
Read against the October 2023 DMs, the pattern is clear: VelvetBlade received Dilley’s private narrative about Arturo in October 2023, processed it, and deployed a public attack campaign based on that narrative eleven months later.
Still not identified by legal name from public records.
Long-standing private relationship with Dilley predating the October 2023 breakup.
Active during and after the breakup as strategic advisor.
Knowledge of Dilley’s financial claims, relationship claims, and adversary management.
Consistent private voice matching the public attack persona.
@VelvetBlade / @VelvetBIade account swap from “l” to capital “I” is a known identity-preservation tactic on X and remains a priority unresolved identification for the book.
The Wire backup adds a structural dimension to the analytical report’s Twitter-based clustering of accounts named “Laura” around VelvetBlade’s operational activities.
Within the “Axis of QAnon” Wire group, the member named “Laura” (= Dilley) is tagged with an abbreviated identifier (@Laura) used both by Farallon and William Welna when directing specific questions to her — indicating she was the central information hub of the research group, just as @laura_greenaura is the central hub on Twitter.
The “Laura array” documented on Twitter, including @REELPOLITIK_LA, @LauraMiers, @lauracosta_13, @ellemm47, @LauraKarr333, etc., may represent organic clustering around Dilley as an influential hub node, or may represent a more organized amplification structure.
The Wire evidence does not resolve this question but confirms that Dilley herself functions as a network node with direct connections to multiple independent researchers, each contributing domain-specific intelligence to the same research agenda.
Structural note: The “Investigating_Network_Connections_and_Control_Dynamics” report correctly frames Farallon as the institutionalized, sanitized successor to the operational style pioneered by Rauhauser.
| Rauhauser era (2010–2014) | Farallon era (2021–present) |
|---|---|
| Anonymous sockpuppet swarms | Curated OSINT practitioner network |
| DailyKos blog posts / raw Twitter ops | Medium essays / corporate LLC facade |
| Exposed via court filings, R.S. McCain, etc. | Largely insulated by corporate structure |
| Brett Kimberlin litigation vehicle | QAnon paper / arXiv preprint vehicle |
| Chaotic; ultimately self-destructive | Managed; strategically persistent |
Both are prominent amplifiers in the counter-disinformation space whose narrative power is derived entirely from a backend intelligence feed. The critical difference: Mensch was an independent operator who burned out her credibility; Dilley is a managed asset whose credibility is maintained precisely because Tietze controls the information supply chain and keeps wild speculation out.
The Wire group notes from Nov 15, 03:32:38 by “Erie” include a quote of an external tweet mentioning @jimstewartson and @davetroy: “Thank you Z. Both Z, and I have been in touch with international media and handed over clear and irrefutable evidence for them to vet.”
This is the earliest Wire-proximate reference to Dave Troy in the same conversation thread as the “Axis of QAnon” group — though it is quoting an external tweet, not a Wire participant. It suggests the Dave Troy connection to the broader network was known to the group members in November 2021.
Cullen Hoback is the director of HBO’s Q: Into the Storm documentary series, a significant QAnon investigation.
This reference suggests Dilley gave Hoback an on-camera or recorded interview discussing personal matters, presumably the relationship with Arturo and/or the paper’s backstory, at some point prior to October 27, 2023.
This interview has not surfaced publicly but represents a potential media artifact that could become relevant to any future publication or legal proceedings.
Source: State News, Apr 2025.
1:1 with Arturo, 0 messages in export window but confirms direct channel. Source: Wire backup export.
Dilley, Farallon/Tietze, Welna, Erie, Arturo Tafoyovsky. Farallon directs investigation, manages PR, archives evidence, asks Laura: “@Laura, what date did Sean reach out to you?” Last message: “Laura can I post that graphic showing you are kicking ass.” Source: Wire backup export.
Source: State News.
8 months after Wire group operations. Source: arXiv:2207.05118.
Registered via Withheld for Privacy ehf, Iceland / Namecheap. Source: WHOIS via ScamAdviser.
Source: State News.
VelvetBlade advises on handling @Kaidinn; Dilley shares financial allegations about Arturo; the exchange includes a degrading sexual comment about a third-party woman. Source: DM screenshots.
Source: Twitter/X archive.
Arturo–Dilley WhatsApp exchanges show volatile relationship continuation. Source: WhatsApp export.
WhatsApp references show both Arturo and Dilley developing book projects on overlapping QAnon material. Source: WhatsApp export.
“I was just meeting with Farallon, helping her with a presentation, giving feedback.” Arturo asks if Tietze dislikes him; Dilley defends Tietze. Source: WhatsApp export.
Arturo notes Dilley’s project “it’s based on my research partially”; Dilley asks for “the video intro you were making for my QAnon talk.” Source: WhatsApp export.
Against @Tafoyovsky: calls him “sick & small man” who lies about suicide to grift. Source: Twitter/X public record.
Source: Public statement.
Michigan Court of Claims, Case 25-000045-MM. Source: Court filing.
Source: The State News.
The DM screenshots confirm the private relationship but do not identify VelvetBlade by legal name. Highest priority remaining OSINT task.
The Wire evidence establishes Tietze’s operational role; corporate structure remains undisclosed.
Dilley references it in the Oct 2023 DM as having already happened. What did she disclose, and is footage public or archived?
Active Wire participant who archives, directs evidence collection, and coordinates adversarial counter-intel.
As of August 2024, Dilley was actively developing a QAnon book and requesting Arturo’s creative contributions. Current status, publisher, and Farallon acknowledgement remain unknown.
The Wire evidence does not resolve this. A SAM.gov / USASpending search for “Farallon” remains the recommended next step.
A commercial OSINT firm, its founder, a tenured MSU professor, a pseudonymous social media operative, and a team of civilian researchers operated an active digital intelligence group — self-named “Axis of QAnon” — for at least three years.
Their flagship product, an arXiv preprint mischaracterized as peer-reviewed 44 times on Twitter, became the subject of a defamation lawsuit and a public disavowal by one of its co-authors. Their private communications reveal hierarchical control, narrative management, coordinated adversarial targeting, and a willingness to deploy personal and sexual contempt as weapons. This is what civilian counter-disinformation looks like when no one is watching.
All primary source documents archived. For legal review before publication.
Research and dossier by Lestat (@Tafoyovsky) · Enzenada Cloud. Free to share and reuse for non-commercial purposes with credit (CC BY-NC 4.0). Commercial use? Let’s talk: paypal.me/TafoyaRomo