Whistleblowers: FBI targeted unvaxxed agents not wearing masks, "religious activities"

High-ranking FBI officials are targeting conservative-minded agents who were previously enlisted in the U.S. armed forces, The Washington Times reported November 10. The FBI has allegedly asked the Times to take the article down but the outlet has refused to do so.

Prior to the most recent statement sent to @WashTimes by the @FBI the bureau "officially" asked us to remove this article, which obviously we did not do. https://t.co/zJLJpCxddQ

— Kerry Picket (@KerryPicket) November 12, 2023

According to Senior Congressional Reporter Kerry Picket, “a Marine and other military veterans at the FBI have been accused of disloyalty to the U.S. because they fit the profile of a supporter of former President Donald Trump, according to two disclosures sent to lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee.”

“Failure to wear a face mask, refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccination and participating in religious activities” were all signs the agency used to identify “right wing” employees for discrimination, Picket added.

The FBI has come under criticism from Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan as well as other voices on the political right like Matt Gaetz in recent weeks as the agency is seeking funding for its brand-new $300 million dollar facility. The bureau is also being investigated by the Judiciary Committee for spying on Catholics who attend the Traditional Latin Mass.

Picket reports that she obtained the disclosures sent to members of the Judiciary Committee that detail the allegations.

Officials in the FBI’s Security Division, or SecD in bureau lingo, suspended Mr. O’Boyle’s security clearance after he was transferred to a new field office, leaving him and his family in a new city where they became financially stranded and homeless, it said.

The disclosure… https://t.co/zJLJpCxddQ

— Kerry Picket (@KerryPicket) November 10, 2023

“The whistleblowers said Jeffrey Veltri, deputy assistant director of the bureau’s security division, and Dena Perkins, assistant section chief, specifically pursued employees who served in the Marine Corps or other military branches,” she writes. “They stripped the agents of security clearances, which sidelined them on the job and pushed them toward the exit, according to the disclosures.”

Picket has since reported that the FBI asked the Times to take her report down. The agency also issued a statement despite initially declining to comment.

“It is wholly irresponsible of The Washington Times, and this reporter, to include outrageous and demonstrably false allegations that the FBI singled out former military employees,” the FBI statement said. “The FBI has not and will not retaliate against individuals who make protected whistleblower disclosures. We do not target or take adverse action against employees for exercising their First Amendment rights or for their political views.”

Picket has re-posted on her X account remarks made by Jason Foster, founder of whistleblower website EMPOWR.us, that refute the FBI’s comment.

The highlighted statements from the FBI below are false.

Here is 26 pages of evidence to the contrary from its own files: https://t.co/rrglJHA2dW

And here is an affidavit describing the FBI Deputy Director threatening FBI employees who dare to criticize the FBI, without… https://t.co/FIY4FMxJBk pic.twitter.com/DlxJwvNjoj

— Jason Foster (@JsnFostr) November 13, 2023

The “statements from the FBI… are false,” Foster said. “Here is an affidavit describing the FBI Deputy Director threatening FBI employees who dare to criticize the FBI, without acknowledging their legally protected rights to blow the whistle,” he added, while providing links to two documents that purportedly debunk the agency’s claim.