During a hearing on Election Day in the high-stakes defamation action, attorneys for Zachary Young, a veteran of the United States Navy, accused CNN of concealing important financial papers with regard to financial discovery. 

During the time that the Biden administration was withdrawing its military forces from Afghanistan in 2021, Young claims that CNN maligned his security consulting company, Nemex Enterprises Inc., according to Fox News.

According to the suit the company is at fault for alleging that the company made illegal profits by assisting individuals in fleeing Afghanistan.

The Navy veteran, Zachary Young believes CNN "destroyed his reputation and business by branding him an illegal profiteer who exploited desperate Afghans" during a Nov. 11, 2021, segment on CNN’s "The Lead with Jake Tapper."

Segment Details

The veteran is suing CNN for defamation, alleging that a segment that aired in 2021 on "The Lead with Jake Tapper" falsely painted him as a "illegal profiteer" exploiting "desperate Afghans" with "exorbitant" extraction fees amid the fallout of President Joe Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The plantiff was successful in convincing a judge in Florida on Monday that he "did not act criminally or illegally." The judge issued a partial summary judgment ruling on a couple of issues in favor of the plaintiff, which was issued in anticipation of a trial that is scheduled to begin on January 6.

Zachary Young, a citizen of the United States who currently resides in Austria and is the president of Nemex Enterprises, a company based in Florida, is filing a lawsuit against CNN for defamation per se, defamation by implication, group libel, and trade libel.

The Defense

He asserts that his efforts to save lives in Afghanistan as a security consultant were distorted by "lies published for sensationalism."

The particular clip in question featured correspondent Alex Marquardt reporting on the show that correspondent Jake Tapper was hosting on November 11, 2021.

During the segment the company displayed a photo of Young over chyrons that read “AFGHANS TRYING TO FLEE TALIBAN FACE BLACK MARKETS, EXORBITANT FEES, NO GUARANTEE OF SAFETY OR SUCCESS” and “AFGHANS AND ACTIVISTS REPORT DEMANDS OF $10K-$14K FOR ATTEMPTS TO GET FAMILY MEMBERS OUT OF COUNTRY.”

Suit History

The initial lawsuit was submitted by Young in June 2022, and an amended complaint was filed in Bay County, Florida, in August 2023.

In the second complaint, Young escalated his argument against CNN and requested punitive damages, which could result in an extremely costly case for the network if the suit proceeds to trial and does not achieve its objectives.

“The fact is that in late 2021, Afghanistan fell to the Taliban. During that turmoil, Young began leveraging his unique skillset and relationships to assist U.S. corporations and charities that wanted to safely and swiftly extract certain person from Afghanistan,” the complaint said.

“Young was successful, saving dozens of lives for various corporate sponsors, and building a track record that led to more engagements with established corporations and NGOs,” such as Audible, Bloomberg, CivilFleet, and H.E.R.O., Inc.