(WASHINGTON) — A recent watchdog report has indicated that the FBI could have taken more proactive measures to gather intelligence prior to the Capitol riot, despite having made some preparations for potential violence on January 6, 2021. The report also noted that there were no undercover FBI agents present at the scene, and none of the bureau’s informants had been authorized to participate in the events that day.
The findings, released by the Justice Department’s inspector general’s office, counter a fringe conspiracy theory promoted by some Republican lawmakers that the FBI was somehow involved in inciting the riot. On that day, rioters, motivated by a desire to overturn Donald Trump’s 2020 election defeat to Joe Biden, breached the Capitol in a violent confrontation with law enforcement.
The review comes nearly four years after a pivotal moment in American history that has challenged the foundations of democracy.
While the scope of the report was limited, it aimed to address pressing questions about potential intelligence failures that preceded the riot and whether any individuals in the crowd were acting under FBI direction. This investigation is part of a larger series of inquiries into the unprecedented events of that day, which have already led to congressional investigations and various indictments at both federal and state levels.
The watchdog discovered that 26 FBI informants were in Washington for protests related to the election on January 6. Interestingly, while three of them entered restricted areas, none had received authorization from the FBI to do so, nor were they permitted to engage in illegal activities or to encourage others to break the law.
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According to the report, the FBI did take appropriate steps to prepare for January 6 but fell short of thoroughly searching its 56 field offices nationwide for relevant intelligence.
The inspector general’s extensive review was initiated just days following the riot, in light of a January 5, 2021, bulletin from the FBI’s Norfolk, Virginia, field office that warned of the potential for “war” at the Capitol. The former head of the FBI’s office in Washington stated that the information from this warning was quickly shared with other law enforcement agencies through a joint terrorism task force.
However, Capitol Police officials have claimed they were not aware of this bulletin at the time and asserted that they had no specific or credible intelligence indicating that a protest at the Capitol would lead to a large-scale assault on the building.
FBI Director Chris Wray, who announced his intention to resign at the end of President Biden’s term in January, defended the agency’s handling of the intelligence report. Wray informed lawmakers in 2021 that the report was communicated through the joint terrorism task force, discussed at a command post in Washington, and made available on an internet portal for other law enforcement agencies.
“We communicated that information in a timely manner to both the Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department through multiple channels,” Wray asserted at the time.
The conspiracy theory alleging that federal law enforcement officers incited the mob has gained traction in conservative circles, with some Republican lawmakers endorsing it. Recently, Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., suggested on a podcast that agents posing as Trump supporters were responsible for instigating the violence.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who stepped back as Trump’s choice for attorney general amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations, sent a letter to Wray in 2021 inquiring about the number of informants present at the Capitol on January 6, asking whether they were “passive informants or active instigators.”
Previously, it was unclear how many FBI informants were among the crowd that day. Wray declined to disclose during a congressional hearing last year how many individuals who entered the Capitol and nearby areas on January 6 were either FBI agents or had previous contact with the FBI. However, he firmly stated that the idea that the violence was part of some FBI operation is “ludicrous.”
During the trial of former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio last year, one FBI informant testified about marching to the Capitol alongside fellow members of the extremist group, detailing communication with his handler while the mob of Trump supporters surged toward the building. Notably, this informant did not participate in the Telegram chats that the Proud Boys allegedly used to plan violence in the days leading up to January 6.
