He claimed that the North Vietnamese had tracked Maddox along the coast by radar, and were thus aware that the destroyer had not actually attacked North Vietnam and that Hanoi (or the local commander) had ordered its craft to engage Maddox anyway.
Sharp tvrdil, že severovietnamský radar sledoval Maddox pozdĺž pobrežia a preto vedel, že Maddox v skutočnosti nenapadol vietnamské lode a že Hanoi (alebo miestny veliteľ) nariadil svojim lodiam zaútočiť naň.