The FBI revoked the security clearance of three agents over concerns regarding the Jan. 6 insurrection on Wednesday ahead of two of their scheduled testimonies before the House Judiciary subcommittee investigating what Republicans call the “weaponization” of federal agencies against conservatives.
In a letter written by a top FBI official to congressional investigators on Wednesday, the bureau said that the agents — Marcus Allen, Stephen Friend and Brett Gloss — participated in the riots on Jan. 6 or expressed views following the attack that called into question their “allegiance to the United States.” The letter, which was sent to subcommittee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, came a day before Allen and Friend were set to testify before the panel.
Friend’s top-secret clearance was revoked after the 12-year FBI employee refused to participate in the SWAT arrest of a Jan. 6 suspect facing misdemeanor charges last summer over concerns that the raid would be an excessive use of force. “I have an oath to uphold the Constitution,” Friend told his supervisors when he declined to join the Aug. 24, 2021, operation in Jacksonville, Fla. “I have a moral objection and want to be considered a conscientious objector.”
The letter said that Friend “espoused an alternative narrative about the events at the U.S. Capitol” while conferring with his supervisors about his refusal. It also noted that he had downloaded files from FBI computers to an unauthorized flash drive but didn’t specify which kinds of documents they were.
Gloss’ security clearance was revoked two weeks ago due to the FBI’s determination that he violated a federal law against entering a restricted area of Capitol grounds while marching with a pro-Trump mob during the Jan. 6 attack. The bureau also found that Gloss had provided “false and/or misleading information” about what he witnessed and whether he was in the restricted area that day, and that he failed to report his presence near the Capitol despite one of his supervisors advising him to do so, according to the letter.
Allen’s top-secret security clearance was revoked last year because he “expressed sympathy for persons or organizations that advocate, threaten or use force or violence,” the letter said, citing the FBI’s findings. In addition to these findings, the bureau determined that Allen had failed to provide relevant information to agents investigating the insurrection about its participants, noting that when another agent requested he research a suspect, Allen reported that he found no evidence that the person had engaged in criminal activity.
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Captain