Washington More than two dozen FBI informants were in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021, prior to the Capitol riot, according to a Justice Department report, even though none of them had permission to take part in the Capitol building breach.
26 FBI informants who were paid to give intelligence were in the city on the day of the riot, according to the study, which was released by the department’s Office of the Inspector General. Thirteen of them penetrated the restricted security area around the Capitol, while four of them entered the Capitol itself during the breach.
Nonetheless, the inquiry verified that none of the informants followed FBI directives to join the mob or access the Capitol.
The report also identified weaknesses in the FBI’s January 6 preparations, pointing out that the agency did not make sufficient use of its field offices across the country to get intelligence that could have predicted the day’s events. The Inspector General claimed that this fundamental step was disregarded in spite of intelligence inputs alerting people to possible violence.
Some of the informants traveled with or had contact with members of far-right organizations, such as the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys. But according to the report, none of the informants who went into the Capitol or the restricted area were accused of trespassing or other riot-related offenses.
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