Osama Bin Laden’s self-acclaimed killer Robert O’Neill has been married since 2017 to Jessica Halpin. Does the former United States Navy SEAL have any kids?
One of the most famous U.S. military operations of the 21st century is undoubtedly Operation Neptune Spear. The Navy SEAL team was sent in to kill Osama bin Laden. Although the team consisted of many skilled operators, the general public quickly grew familiar with one person in particular — Robert J. O’Neill
O’Neill shot to fame, notoriety, and controversy for claiming to be the sole shooter who killed bin Laden. For better or worse, he developed quite the public persona through it all. With that being said, where is O’Neill today, over a decade after Operation Neptune Spear was conducted and is he married with children? Here’s what we know.
Who is Robert O’Neill married to?
Robert J. O’Neill is a former member of the elite U.S. Navy Seals, TV news contributor, and author.
He was born on April 10, 1976, in Butte, Montana, United States to parents Tom O’Neill (father) and Diane Johnson (mother)
He is not an only child to his parents as he has a brother names Tom O’Neill.
O’Neill described his childhood in Butte as “idyllic”.
He graduated from Butte Central High School in 1994, and has attended Montana Technological University.
Robert O’Neill stands at a height of 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 meters). He also weighs 158 lbs (72 kg).
He gained an immense fame for claiming to be the sole individual to kill Osama bin Laden.
Robert O’Neill was part of a small team sent into Pakistan to kill the 9/11 mastermind in 2011.
About his personal and love life, he has been reportedly married twice and is currently in his second marriage.
Who is Robert O’Neill’s wife?
After over 16 years of working the US army, the acclaimed Osama Bin Laden killer, Robert O’Neill, retired and started a new life in 2012.
At age 41, he married his sweetheart Jessica Halpin.
Robert and Jessica met at a conference that the former was speaking at. Their first meeting was when Halpin tried to get her boss to booked him to speak at a get-together for her company. She knew that Robert was a member of the special forces, however, he had no idea that he was the individual who shot and killed Osama bin Laden.
However, this fact is something that they both don’t discuss often.
“We don’t wake up in the morning and talk about Osama bin Laden. It’s not in my everyday life, I forget about it for the most part,” Robert said.
Robert got married to Jessica in August 2017. Their wedding which took place in Cape Cod was attended by Kid Rock and Tim Montana. The event was flanked with high security. In a hilarious gaffe, Robert arrived to his wedding ceremony without rings.
“I realized that I had forgotten the rings on the way to the church,” he said. “I called my friend, Shorty, who is a real problem solver, but he had no idea where they were. He managed to track them down and came racing to the church. Shorty mounted the car on the curb and came running towards the venue, reaching into his pocket. Security almost drew on him but he completely saved the day.”
They had their honeymooned in Bora Bora.
The couple recently celebrated their wedding anniversary. The former SEAL Team 6 member took to his Instagram to share a loved-up picture with his wife and wrote “Happy Anniversary @jessicalynneoneill Thank you for putting up with me! I love you.”
The couple recently celebrated their wedding anniversary. The former SEAL Team 6 member took to his Instagram to share loved-up pictures with his wife and wrote “Happy Anniversary @jessicalynneoneill Thank you for putting up with me! I love you”.
Before Jessica, O’Neill was believed to have been separated from his marriage to his first wife. They tied the knot in March 2004, and were legally separated by February 2013.
Does Robert O’Neill have any childen?
Robert O’Neill is believed to be a father. Per reports, he has at least two children from his relationship with his first spouse.
However, there have not been any public appearance of his former partner and even his kids with her.
Where is Robert J. O’Neill now?
O’Neill has transitioned fully into a public figure role. He’s an author and a motivational speaker. O’Neill has also contributed to both FOX and Newsmax.
Aside from contributing to Newsmax, O’Neill is an entrepreneur and a public figure. With over 380,000 followers on Instagram, he has quite a sizable group of users keeping up with his day-to-day life. O’Neill is also the founder of an organization called Special Operators Transition Foundation, which according to their Instagram, “assists SOF veterans with the successful transition into their next great careers.”
When he isn’t hosting public speaking events, O’Neill is an accomplished author who has penned the likes of books such as The Operator and The Way Forward. On his official website, he provides a wealth of information about his professional life, including how to book him for speaking events, keep up with news in his life, and even shop a line of merchandise that he has created.
He’s been in the news for controversies regarding Osama’s death as well as other matters.
His claims about killing Osama bin Laden have been met with some controversy.
According to The Intercept, a former SEAL Team Six member told the publication that O’Neill’s claims about killing bin Laden were false. He stated that O’Neill found bin Laden “bleeding out on the floor, possibly already dead, after being shot in the chest and leg by the lead assaulter on the raid” and then proceeded to shoot him twice in the head. While O’Neill maintains that he was the trigger man, the U.S. government hasn’t officially clarified who pulled the trigger to this day.
In August 2020, O’Neill hit the headlines again when he was banned from Delta Air Lines for not wearing a mask on a flight, according to FOX. He attempted to appeal the company’s decision to their CEO and has maintained that he isn’t anti-mask.
Following that he shared his very straightforward opinion on wearing a mask.
He tweeted that he’s “not a p***y” in the caption to a picture showing him without a mask on board an airplane.
The tweet was later deleted, with O’Neill claiming it was his wife who deleted it.
In October 2020, O’Neill made headlines yet again for hitting back at former President Donald Trump when the latter retweeted a post claiming that Osama bin Laden hadn’t actually been killed in Operation Neptune Spear, according to Politico.
“Very brave men said [goodbye] to their kids to go kill Osama bin Laden. We were given the order by President Obama. It was not a body double,” Robert tweeted. “Thank you Mr. President. Happy birthday @USNavy.”