The FBI had at least 26 confidential informants on the ground in Washington, DC, during the Jan. 6, 2021 storming of the Capitol — most of whom engaged in illegal activity during the chaos, the Justice Department’s watchdog confirmed in a bombshell report.
Leadership at the bureau had long been adamant that it did not have sources who “orchestrated” the riot. Questions about whether the FBI had informants involved in the riots were met with “conspiracy theory” labels by many mainstream media outlets.
“If you’re asking if the violence at the Capitol was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources or agents, the answer is no!” outgoing FBI director Christopher Wray told lawmakers back in July. Wray had long refused to divulge exactly how many informants were present that day.
But the DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General found that of the FBI’s confidential sources on the ground, four entered the Capitol in the midst of the riot and 13 went into a restricted area. Only nine were not found to have engaged in illegal activity, according to a long-awaited report released Thursday.
Critically, that report also shot down unsubstantiated speculation that the bureau had agents stoking some of the mayhem that day,
“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,” the report said.
Only three of its 26 informants present had been instructed to observe potential domestic terrorist suspects on the day of the riot, the DOJ watchdog found. The rest of the 23 appear to have gone to the Capitol of their own accord.
Hellbound and Down 