THE IPHONE
WARRANT
The FBI obtained the iPhone warrant to clean up the mess they created when they illegally took Teddy Miller's phone. But instead of cleaning it up, they dug themselves an even deeper hole.
FBI Agent Benjamin Wood lied to the judge multiple times to get the warrant.
FIRST, WHAT IS A WARRANT?
Think of a warrant like a permission slip from a judge that allows the FBI or police to search or take someone's property.
They can't just search your private things because they want to. First, they have to tell a judge what they want to search and why.
They need probable cause, which means real facts giving the judge a good reason to believe a crime happened and that evidence will probably be found where or in what they want to search.
The police have to tell the judge the truth. They aren't allowed to knowingly lie or recklessly use false information to trick the judge into giving them permission.
The police usually don't have to tell you before they get a warrant. But if they use it to search your stuff or take your property, they are required to let the owner know.
And a warrant for electronics must be specific about what devices or information police are allowed to search for and seize, instead of simply giving them permission to search everything.
THEY LIED ABOUT LEGALLY HAVING THE PHONE.
The FBI applied for a search-only warrant. Agent Benjamin Wood told the judge:
iPhone warrant affidavit · filed 08/16/24
Agent Lee testimony · page 41
One day before Wood applied for the warrant, Agent Aaron Lee testified that Teddy had put the phone down on the other side of the door frame, another officer collected it, and the agents did not have a search warrant to enter the house and take items.
Wood then relied on that claimed possession again when asking the judge to authorize the search:
Affidavit · paragraphs 69–71
PERJURY
Knowingly making false statements on an official document.
He knew exactly what he was doing. The documents make that impossible to ignore. Yet these are the same people calling Teddy a criminal.
VIEW FULL IPHONE WARRANT →THEY LIED ABOUT PHILCO.
Wood told the judge that Teddy told the investor he controlled Philco LLC and used that claim to get him to invest.
Wood affidavit · paragraphs 51–52
At the time, Teddy and Bear Industries were already in a public lawsuit with Philco LLC on the other side.
Philco LLC v. Bear Industries, LLC and Theodore Miller · 23-C-489
Borrower: Bear Industries · $20,000 · Bigley Avenue
The FBI had seen the investment documents. The agreement identifies Bear Industries as the borrower and Bigley Avenue as the project. Philco isn't mentioned in it.
THEY LIED ABOUT TEDDY OWNING THE PROPERTIES.
Wood told the judge Teddy “never owned 1017 or 1019 Bigley Avenue.”
Wood affidavit · paragraph 57
The FBI already had the July 27, 2022 land contract. It identifies Philco as the SELLER, T&C Construction Services as the PURCHASER, and identifies 1019 & 1021 Bigley Avenue.
Land Contract · July 27, 2022 · 1019 & 1021 Bigley Avenue
THEY CONCEALED THE WARRANT FROM TEDDY.
The iPhone warrant was filed in a separate magistrate case, 2:24-mj-00138. The government immediately asked that the warrant materials be sealed.
iPhone warrant docket · sealing, execution and unsealing entries
On August 16, the court ordered the Search Warrant, Application, Affidavit, Attachments and Search Warrant Return to “REMAIN SEALED until further order of this Court.” The docket says the warrant was returned executed on August 19. The government moved to unseal it on September 16, and the case was unsealed that day.
Wood had also specifically asked the judge for 30 days of delayed notification.
Affidavit · paragraph 71 · request for delayed notification
Months later, the docket shows Teddy requesting documents. DOJ's July 25, 2025 letter then lists the iPhone warrant and the order unsealing the case among the materials sent to him.
DOJ letter · July 25, 2025
THEY NEVER CONNECTED THE CRIME TO THIS IPHONE.
Wood did give the judge reasons that cell phones generally could contain evidence. But look at the connection he actually gave to Teddy's specific seized iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Affidavit · page 12
Affidavit · page 13
Wood said social media, DocuSign, email and Google Drive could be accessed from a cell phone. He also identified older forwarded emails that allegedly said “Sent from my iPhone” and described a TikTok video apparently recorded with a cell phone.
These pages do not identify the seized iPhone 14 Pro Max as the particular device used for the alleged investor communications.
VIEW FULL AFFIDAVIT →WHAT DID THEY ASK TO SEARCH?
Wood told the judge the warrant would authorize a forensic examination of the TARGET DEVICE for electronically stored data described in Attachment B.
Affidavit · paragraph 9
Affidavit · paragraph 12
The affidavit describes the target device as capable of functioning as a telephone, camera, media player, GPS device, PDA and Internet-access device. It also explains that examining devices of this type can reveal information about who possessed or used them.
THE DOCKET SAYS “EXECUTED.” THE RETURN IS BLANK.
The docket says the search warrant was “RETURNED EXECUTED on 8/19/2024.” Now look at the return filed for the warrant.
Search warrant return · Case 2:24-mj-00138 · Document 4
Wood completely ignored this critical part of the warrant process. Without a completed and verified inventory, there is no documented safeguard showing exactly what was taken, what was searched, or who verified it. That leaves serious questions unanswered: Was this the same phone? Could evidence have been added, removed, or altered? What exactly was searched? The very paperwork designed to answer those questions was left blank.
VIEW FULL WARRANT RETURN →TEDDY ASKED FOR HIS IPHONE BACK.
Teddy filed Document 215, titled “Motion to Return the Defendant's Cell Phone and Suppress Evidence for Illegal Search and Seizure.”
Document 215 · Motion to Return the Defendant's Cell Phone and Suppress Evidence for Illegal Search and Seizure
When a search or seizure is found to be unlawful, the property must be returned to the owner immediately.
LOOK AT WHAT JUST HAPPENED.
If just one of these things happened during an investigation, it could be grounds for evidence to be thrown out of court and property returned to its owner. But it wasn't one thing. It was all of them. When this many things happen with the same piece of evidence, you have to ask an even bigger question: How much other evidence was tainted too?
These agents went far beyond making a simple mistake. Their actions raise questions about whether they committed crimes themselves. And remember, THIS IS JUST ONE WARRANT.
With this one document alone, Teddy's Fourth Amendment rights were violated, his Fifth Amendment rights were violated, false statements were made to a federal judge, sworn testimony contradicted what the FBI told the judge, required paperwork was left blank, and the list goes on.
Teddy was called a criminal, put in jail, and lost years of his life. Based on this evidence alone, Teddy should be released and the agents responsible should be investigated and prosecuted for any crimes they committed.