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WASHINGTON – The FBI and the New York City Police Department have passed on information to the Capitol Police about the possibility of violence during the January 6 protests against the electoral college vote count, and the FBI has even visited more than a dozen extremists already under investigation to urge them not to travel to Washington, senior law enforcement officials told NBC News.
These previously unreported details contradict a claim by a senior FBI official this week that officials had no indication that violence was a possibility, and add to questions about what intelligence officials had investigated before. riot at the Capitol which led to the deaths of an officer and four others. , including a rioter who was shot dead by police.
“Social media is only part of a complete picture of intelligence, and while there has been some First Amendment protected activity on social media to include some people making threats, at this point Investigators did not find that there was an organized plot to gain access to the Capitol, “a senior FBI official told NBC News.
It was immediately evident after the Capitol was seized by a violent mob on Wednesday that the Capitol Police, whose job it is to defend the facility and the lawmakers working there, had completely misjudged the security threat. The leader of this force was quickly expelled from his post, as were other legislative security officials.
But as evidence rises that some extremists told the world via social media what they had in mind, questions arise as to whether the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies took these messages seriously enough – and, if they did, why they didn’t intervene until well after the building was attacked.
Asked Friday whether the slow police response on Wednesday was the result of an intelligence failure, FBI Washington Field Office official Steven D’Antuono replied no, and added: “Nothing did not indicate that there was anything (planned) other than the activity protected by the First Amendment. “
DC Police Chief Robert Contee said something similar on Thursday, telling reporters: “There was no information to suggest there would be a breach of the United States Capitol.”
Ken Rapuano, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Security, told reporters that the Justice Department and other law enforcement officials told the Pentagon they had no indication he there would be “significant violent demonstrations”.
But there were, in fact, many indications of potential violence.
As NBC News reported, a digital flyer released to Instagram and Facebook in December referred to what would happen as: “Operation Occupy the Capitol.”
On the fringe 8kun bulletin board, which is popular with QAnon followers, users talked for weeks about a siege on the Capitol.
“You can go to Washington on January 6 and help storm the Capitol,” an 8kun user said a day before the siege. “As many patriots as possible. We are going to storm government buildings, kill cops, kill security guards, kill federal employees and agents and demand a recount.”
“As for the protests scheduled for Jan. 6, the violent rhetoric we see online is at a new level,” said Daniel J. Jones, president of Advance Democracy Inc., a global research organization that studies disinformation and extremism. NBC News in an article published the day before the riot. “There are endorsements of violence on all platforms.”
How could the FBI and other agencies have missed all of this? Turns out not, officials told NBC News.
“Prior to this event, the FBI obtained credible and actionable information about those who were planning to attend the protests and who had expressed a desire to engage in violence,” the senior FBI official told NBC News. “The FBI managed to discourage these people from going to Washington”
The official added that “the FBI and our federal, state and local partners have gathered and shared available intelligence in preparation for the various planned events.” The FBI was ready to adapt as needed to streamline events on the ground, including having rapid response teams in reserve. For most of the day, the crowd was peaceful and non-confrontational. “
However, when it became clear that some people were breaking into the Capitol grounds and entering the buildings, the United States Capitol Police called for help. Within 50 minutes of this request, three FBI tactical teams were on hand to take control of the area and provide protection to members of Congress and staff. Over the course of the evening, the FBI’s presence finally grew to more than 150 agents and other personnel . “
The official was unable to explain why D’Antuono, the head of the Washington field office, said there was no sign of violence.
The FBI official said that by dissuading some extremists from traveling to Washington, the office could have prevented an even more violent situation.
The NYPD, which has the most robust intelligence gathering and analytical arm of any local police department in the country, has sent law enforcement agencies across the country – including the Capitol Police – a package of intelligence Describing the threats and violent rhetoric on social media in the weeks and days leading up to the Jan.6 rally, several senior law enforcement officials told NBC News.
Officials say Capitol Hill police received a specific and separate intelligence report describing threats of violence and extremist rhetoric that appeared on social media in connection with the rally.
Law enforcement officials familiar with intelligence assessments say President Donald Trump’s exhortation to march on Capitol Hill likely prompted a much larger contingent of people to come there than they would have. could have happened otherwise.
Capitol Police and the FBI Washington Field Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
It was not just the police who issued the warnings. A private intelligence report released in December, obtained by NBC News, noted that “the MAGA Million March in Washington DC on January 6 is the next major flashpoint … the mass event (which will take place in the National Mall and outside the Capitol) is likely to spark street violence, some of which can be fatal, between Antifa and Trump supporters or far-right groups. “
Many questions remain as to why the FBI, DHS and other agencies did not do more to ensure the Capitol was protected. Officials said Capitol Hill police assured everyone they could handle the situation, and key lawmakers also said they heard the same assurances from the force.
The Washington Metropolitan Police Department is responsible for crowd control in the city, and the mayor of Washington has told Justice Department officials that she neither wants nor needs their help. While city police helped take over the Capitol, they were unable to stop the crowds from getting there.
But the FBI is also under surveillance. Its main investigative priority is terrorism, foreign and domestic. Had this been an Al Qaeda plot to storm the Capitol, some experts say, it is likely that the FBI would have arrested the participants before they left their home airports as they sought to get to Washington.
One difference, however, is that there is no national terrorism law, which means fewer opportunities for the FBI to legally monitor suspects, including their dark web posts, said Frank Figliuzzi, former FBI Deputy Director and current NBC News contributor.
Outside of a criminal investigation into a specific individual or group, Figliuzzi said on Saturday, “the FBI is not allowed to watch and monitor the same things you and I can watch on Twitter and Talk.”
Joyce Vance, a former U.S. lawyer for the Northern District of Alabama, said there are tools the FBI can use to monitor potential violence from domestic extremists. She suggests that the problem is one of focus and will.
“The challenge for the FBI and the DOJ is to give permanent priority to national white supremacist terrorist groups and to treat them as seriously as they treat foreign terrorism,” she said.
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