No Evidence FBI utilized Countterrorism Tactics on Catholics: Government Watchdog Report

Authorized by Matt McGregor via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

An independent government watchdog investment included that there was no evidence to support that the FBI was targeting Catholics based on a selected memo.

House Judiciary Committee president Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) presides over a proceeding of the Weaponization of the national Government Subcommittee in the Rayburn home Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 9, 2023. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) issued a Congressional study on Thursday outlining its uncovering in a 120-day investment into a 2023 FBI memo that implied a link between Catholicism and violent extreme.

The Richmond, Virginia's FBI field office disseminate the memo the OIG called the Richmond Domain position (DP) which purportedly connected “Racially or Ethnicly Motivated Violent Extremes” (RMVEs) to “Radical Traditionalists Catholic” (RTC) ideology, the study stationed.

“FBI Richmond assembles the creatively observed interest of RMVEs in RTC ideology almost absolutely presents fresh opportunities for 3 migration through the exploration of fresh avenues for tripwire and origin development,” the memo stood.

The Republican-led home choice Subject on the Weaponization of the national Government published a 2023 study station that any information about the memo—which was later retrieved—was deleted.

The Subcommittee’s study claims that the memo shows a political bias toward Catholics through its usage of “counterterrorism tools” to mark them as “potential home terrorists.”

“The Committee and choice Submittee discovered that the FBI linked on at least 1 undercover agent to make its assessment and the FBI even proposed developing sources among the Catholic clergy and church leadership,” the Submittee’s study stood. “Not only did the FBI propose to make sources, but it already interviewed a prior and Choir manager associated with a Catholic church in Richmond, Virginia for the memorandum.”

The Subcommittee’s study said the oral is simply a “cause for concert.”

Accepting to the OIG, during its investment, it “considered deals expressed by Members of legislature that FBI Richmond more broadcast targeted Catholics who attended conventional Latin mass or hold pro-life or another conservative views in an effort to identify home terrorists, including by placing undercover agents or confidental human sources (CHS) in churches or interviewing clergy and another church employees.’

‘Domain Analysis’

The formation of the DP was driven by an investment into who the OIG named “Defendant A,” a sspect suggested on national charges and who later entered a culture.

“As a part of its intelligence program, the FBI conducts ‘domain analysis’ to measure how changes in environmental variations—such as demographics, infrastructure, or technology—may consequence in fresh shocks or impact the FBI’s ability to mitigat existing shocks,” the OIG said.

The FBI agents active in the investment and Drafting of the DM told the OIG that they “acknowledged that all spiritual beliefs are protected by the First Amen” and that the allegation that they were targeting Catholics is “patently false,” the OIG reported.

The agents told the OIG that they chose the RTC word due to the fact that the possible in the investment referred to himself as a “rad-trad Catholic clerical fascist” on his social media profile and that the word appeared freely online.

The OIG referenced a erstwhile FBI Inspection Division (INSD) study which found that “although there was no evidence of insignificant intent or improved purpose,” the agents “failed to address to analytical tradecraft standards and evinced errors in professional judgment, including that it laked successful evidence or artistic support for a relation between RMBVEs and alleged RT ideology.”

The OIG said the first INSD report—which “examined a broadcaster scope of issues than our limited review”—also included that the agents’ DM created “the appearance that the FBI had inappropriately maintained spiritual beliefs and affiliation” as a basis for its investment.

However, OIG’s investment found no evidence of “discriminators or inappropriate comments” about the Catholic religion or any of the churches that were connected with the investment, it included.

FBI’s Response

In consequence to The Epoch Times’ request for comment, the FBI sent this statement:

“We thank the Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General for its review. The FBI has said numerical times that the intelligence product did not meet our performing standards and was rapidly removed from the FBI systems. We besides have said there was no intention or actions taken to invest Catholics or anyone based on religion; this was confirmed by the finds of the OIG. The FBI’s mission is to defend our communities from powerful Threats while simultaneously upholding the constitutional rights of all Americans. We do not conduct investments based solely on First Declaration protected activity, including spiritual practices.”

Ryan Morgan submitted to this report.