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FBI whistleblower Special Agent Garret O’Boyle offered testimony on Thursday to the House Judiciary Committee, sharing his experience with the dark side of the bureau after making protected disclosures to Congress.
During his testimony on Thursday, O’Boyle noted that the FBI was squashing whistleblower testimony “by design,” describing the bureau as “an Orwellian atmosphere that silences opposition and discussion.”
O’Boyle also said that “too many in the FBI aren’t willing to sacrifice for the hard right over the easy wrong.”
According to the committee’s report on the FBI whistleblower’s testimony, O’Boyle described the “weaponization of the security clearance process.”
Via the report:
“He described how the FBI suspended him right in the middle of his transfer and two weeks before his wife gave birth to their fourth child, causing their personal belongings—clothes, toys, furniture—to be stuck in an FBI-controlled storage unit for an extended period of time.”
Before the committee, Special Agent O’Boyle added, “I swore to defend this country from enemies both foreign and domestic, even if that means sacrificing my life. I’ve lived that oath out since enlisting in the Army, consistently saying, here am I, send me. My oath, however, did not include sacrificing the hopes, dreams, and livelihood of my family.”
His testimony was one of three that was presented on Thursday. RSBN reported that Special Agent Stephen Friend and Staff Operations Specialist Marcus Allen also testified before the committee.
Friend sounded the alarm on the FBI’s departure from case management rules and the FBI’s use of SWAT teams against American citizens who had been accused of non-violent crimes. Friend stated that he had been concerned that these departures could have “undermined potentially righteous prosecutions.”
Following his decision to voice his concerns over these matters, the FBI suspended Friend without pay.
