FBI Chief Christopher Wray on Tuesday defended federal police action in the Senate before pro-Trump protesters stormed the Capitol, saying reports of potential violence had been passed through "
normal procedure
" to authorities local.
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About 10,000 supporters of the former president had gathered on January 6 on the outskirts of Congress, where elected officials certified the victory of Joe Biden.
Faced with too few police forces, around 800 demonstrators, according to the authorities, had succeeded in breaking into the Capitol, causing chaos and controversy over the lack of anticipation of the security forces.
The day before the attack, a report from the local FBI office in Norfolk (Virginia) had warned of calls to “
fight
”, underlined at the end of February the Capitol Police chief, Steven Sund, who has since resigned. .
But the document, sent in the evening to the Capitol police, had not circulated internally, he assured the Senate.
Questioned by the Senate Judiciary Committee, Christopher Wray on the contrary affirmed that this “
situation report
”, which gathered “
raw, unverified and uncorroborated
elements
, which had been posted online
”, was “
quickly
” transmitted "
To our partners, including the Capitol Police, and the Washington Police
."
In addition, it was transmitted in three different ways: by electronic message, orally to the local counterterrorism services, and via a national portal internal to the police.
This approach is "
consistent with our normal procedure
", assured the director of the FBI.
The information, even unverified, was "
worrying and specific
"
enough
to be the subject of a report, he said.
Norfolk officers made "
reasonable judgment
" to release their information, "
even though they did not know if it was going to happen
."
White militiamen and supremacists
He admitted that he did not have an “
adequate response
” as to why the report had not been forwarded to police officials in the capital.
During their hearing in the Senate, the Capitol security officials felt that the American intelligence services had underestimated the risks during the demonstrations of January 6, so that the security system was not adapted to counter "
criminals ready for war
”.
The federal intelligence services had pointed out "
a risk of violence
" of which "
Congress would be the target
", but had "
never mentioned a coordinated assault
", underlined the former sergeant-at-arms of the House of Representatives, Paul Irving.
Christopher Wray assured that information gathering needs to be improved.
“
We're very focused on how to get better sources, better information, better analysis, to make sure what happened on January 6 never happens again
,” he says.
Read also: Who are the pro-Trump who stormed the US Congress?
The federal police chief also brushed aside allegations that the attackers on Capitol Hill were anti-fascist activists disguised as supporters of Donald Trump.
"
So far we have no material on violent anarchist extremists or people associated with anti-fascists in connection with January 6,
" he said.
According to him, the attackers were mostly "
violent extremists members of militias
" and also included "
violent extremists motivated by racism and who support white supremacism
".
Five people, including a Capitol Hill police officer, died in the coup, and more than 270 people are being prosecuted to varying degrees for their participation in the attack, said Christopher Wray.
Read also: The US Congress launches the assault on Trump
Accused of "
incitement to insurgency
" for having called on his supporters to march on Congress on January 6, Donald Trump was finally acquitted in the Senate on February 13, after a vigorous trial.
He never accepted the result of the presidential election, believing without foundation that his defeat was due to massive fraud.
