A report from the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General found "no evidence" to support the claims of Republican officials who alleged undercover FBI agents provoked the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
In a comprehensive report released Thursday, the DOJ watchdog said it had reviewed evidence and testimony following the Jan. 6 riot, but there were no "undercover employees in the various protest crowds, or at the Capitol, on January 6."
At least three confidential human sources were said to have been at the Capitol on Jan. 6, but "none of these three FBI CHSs were authorized to enter the Capitol or a restricted area, or to otherwise break the law."
"Nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6," the report said.
An additional 23 informants were reported in the Washington, D.C., area.
Many of the 26 confidential human sources reportedly "provided information relevant to the January 6 Electoral Certification before the event." But only "a few" relayed information about the riot as it occurred.
The report noted that under President Donald Trump's administration, the FBI failed to follow a standard procedure "that could have helped the FBI and its law enforcement partners with their preparations in advance of January 6."
"Specifically, the FBI did not canvass its field offices in advance of January 6, 2021, to identify any intelligence, including CHS reporting, about potential threats to the January 6 Electoral Certification," the investigation found.
ALSO READ: The reckoning: Plenty of hurts coming for the people who didn't care about their country
According to CNN, Republican lawmakers, including Reps. Clay Higgins (R-LA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY), have said the FBI provoked the Jan. 6 riot. Conspiracy theorists have regularly referred to the event as a "fedsurrection."
Earlier this year, a poll found that 25% of Americans believed the FBI "probably" or "definitely" instigated the violence that day.
