Global Courant 2023-05-18 08:24:52
The FBI has revoked the security clearances of three agents over issues related to the January 6 attack on the Capitol, according to a letter from the agency to congressional investigators obtained by ABC News.
One of the agents, according to the FBI, belonged to the pro-Trump mob in the US Capitol, and the two others allegedly interfered with investigative efforts.
At least two of the agents – Steve Friend and Marcus Allen – are expected to testify Thursday before the federal government’s Republican-led subcommittee on armaments, as part of its investigation into the federal government’s alleged misdeeds against conservatives.
The letter could lead to a controversial hearing, which could provide new ammunition for Democrats seeking to undermine the credibility of the commission’s witnesses and bolster their claims that Republicans are trying to whitewash the seriousness of the attack on the Capitol. .
Russell Dye, a spokesman for R-Ohio committee chair Jim Jordan, said the letter was an act of desperation by the FBI.
“This is a last-minute Hail Mary from the FBI in a desperate attempt to save their reputation… before brave whistleblowers testify about the FBI’s politicized behavior and retaliatory action against anyone who dares to speak up,” Dye told ABC News.
According to the letter, Officer Brett Gloss knowingly entered a restricted area around the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack, in violation of the law.
“The FBI has reviewed communications in which Mr. Gloss expressed support for the protesters’ unauthorized access to the Capitol and for their criminal acts against the US,” the letter, which was sent Wednesday, said.
The letter also says that Gloss provided false or misleading information during an interview about what he observed at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and whether he entered the restricted zone.
The agents’ security clearances were revoked earlier this month, the letter said.
“In particular, the Security Division found that Mr. Allen espoused alternative theories to colleagues, both verbally and in emails and instant messages sent on the FBI’s systems, in apparent attempts to impede investigative activities,” the letter to investigators said. he claimed that Allen had not provided any relevant information. information about criminal activity at the Capitol on January 6.
Protesters attempt to enter the Capitol during a protest, January 6, 2021.
Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE
The agency also says Friend refused to participate in a court-authorized search and arrest of a criminal suspect and also espoused an alternate Jan. 6 story.
In addition to these concerns, the FBI also said in their letter that Friend would post sensitive FBI information on his social media accounts and conduct an interview with a Russian news agency without permission from the FBI’s public affairs office.
