About
“Big Balls” Assault Linked to D.C. National Guard Deployment and Federal Police Takeover False Flag Theory refers to a conspiracy theory that speculates that the alleged assault of former DOGE employee Edward ‘Big Balls’ Coristine in Washington D.C. was staged so that the U.S. government under President Donald Trump could federalize the Washington D.C. police and deploy the National Guard in the nation’s capital in August 2025. The theory started when the 19-year-old “Big Balls” was allegedly jumped by “local youths” when he was purportedly preventing a carjacking in D.C. The claim was initially spread by President Trump on Truth Social, who posted a bloody, shirtless photo of Coristine and threatened to take federal control of the city. Elon Musk amplified the story on Twitter / X soon after. In the following days, President Trump federalized the Washington D.C. police and deployed the National Guard. The cause and effect inspired skepticism online, expressed in viral memes and posts. Users speculated that “Big Balls” could have been assaulted on purpose or that the photo could have been staged as a False Flag.
Origin
On August 5th, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump shared a post on Truth Social that attached a photo of former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer Edward “Big Balls” Coristine shirtless and covered in blood. President Trump alleged that Coristine was attacked by “local ‘youths’ and gang members, some only 14, 15, and 16 years old” in Washington D.C. President Trump then threatened to “take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run.” Over eight days, the post gained over 45,100 likes (shown below).

On August 5th, Elon Musk shared a post on X that attached a screenshot of the President’s Truth Social post. Musk claimed that “a former DOGE team member,” referring to Coristine, confronted “a gang of about a dozen young men” who were trying to “assault a woman in her car at night in D.C.” He finished the tweet by writing, “It is time to federalize D.C.” Over eight days, the tweet gained over 441,000 likes (shown below).

On August 5th, 2025, WIRED obtained the police report of the alleged crime and published an article on the matter. According to the report, Coristine and Emily Bryant, listed as Coristine’s “significant other,” were the victims of the alleged carjacking, which was allegedly perpetrated by “a group of approximately 10 juveniles surrounding the complainants’ vehicle.” Two of the suspects were detained by police later on August 3rd.
On August 6th, X user @CantEverDie quote-tweeted a post from the New York Post about the alleged assault. The user wrote, “I can’t prove it yet but this is a staged psyop for something,” gaining over 75,000 likes in a week (shown below).

Spread
A few hours later, on August 6th, 2025, X user @esjesjesj quote-tweeted the New York Post, writing, “Something way off about this story. There’s a carjacking by 10 kids at 3AM Sunday and the owner of the car just happens to be fucking Big Balls?” Over one week, the post gained over 5,900 likes (shown below).

On August 11th, X user @samprkr tweeted, “I’m convinced the Big Balls thing was a false flag, by the way,” gaining over 14,000 likes in two days (shown below).

Also on August 11th, 2025, TikToker @notnotpokepreet posted a video with the caption, “That time in US history when a guy from DOGE nicknamed ‘Big Balls’ got beat up and robbed by teenagers so Washington DC got put under permanent martial law,” gaining over 128,300 likes in two days (shown below).
@notnotpokepreet ♬ Mii Maker Wii U – nintendo nightcore
On August 12th, X user @quendergeer tweeted a photo of Coristine, captioned, “I can’t believe this guy got beat up by 15-year-old girls and now we have martial law,” gaining over 73,000 likes in a day (shown below).

Various Examples



@krissieonline an incel got beat up now its everyones problem.. #dc #washingtondc ♬ original sound – GAY TIMES
@the_alphonse_angle Who even choose the nickname “BIG BALLS”‼️🤦🏾♂️ #dc #donaldtrump #news #trending #washingtondc ♬ original sound – Joshua Alphonse