From the DOJ IG:
Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz announced today the release of a review examining the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) handling of its confidential human sources (CHS) and intelligence collection efforts in the lead up to the events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Consistent with OIG practice, in spring 2022 the OIG paused aspects of our review to ensure that the OIG’s investigative work did not conflict with or compromise any ongoing DOJ criminal investigations or prosecutions. Having been informed by federal prosecutors last year that our review would no longer potentially interfere with pending criminal prosecutions, we resumed our work on this matter. In doing so, we were cognizant of the amount of time that had passed, as well as the number of non-DOJ OIG oversight reports that had been publicly released regarding the events of January 6. We determined that an area that had not yet been thoroughly reviewed by other entities was the FBI’s direction and handling of its CHSs in the lead-up to and on January 6, and whether the FBI exploited its CHSs and other available information to determine the nature of threats in advance of the electoral vote certification on January 6. Accordingly, we focused our review on that topic.
The findings in today’s report include:
- The FBI Took Significant and Appropriate Steps in Advance of January 6 to Prepare for its Supporting Role. Despite playing only a supporting role in preparing for and responding to the events of January 6, the FBI recognized the potential for violence and took significant and appropriate steps to prepare for this supporting role.
- The FBI Did Not Canvass Field Offices for Intelligence from CHSs Prior to January 6, which Could Have Helped the FBI and Law Enforcement with Their January 6 Preparations. The FBI could have taken an additional step to canvass its field offices in advance of January 6 to identify any intelligence, including CHS reporting, that might have assisted with the FBI and law enforcement partners’ preparations for January 6. FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate described the lack of a canvass prior to January 6 as a “basic step that was missed,” and told the OIG that he would have expected a formal canvassing of sources to have occurred.
- Confusion and Lack of Coordination Contributed to the FBI’s Inaccurate Report to Congress that It Had Canvassed Field Offices. After January 6, the FBI reported to Congress that it had directed its field offices prior to January 6 to canvass their CHSs for information concerning threats in connection with the January 6 Electoral Certification. However, as noted, we found that no canvassing of field offices for source information had occurred. We found that the FBI’s statements to Congress were not intentionally inaccurate, and that confusion and lack of coordinated communications contributed to the inaccurate reporting.
- No Undercover FBI Employees at Protests or at the Capitol on January 6. We found no evidence in the materials we reviewed or the testimony we received showing or suggesting that the FBI had undercover employees in the various protest crowds, or at the Capitol, on January 6.
