A member of the United States Secret Service looks out from the roof of the White House in Washington, DC on August 21, 2021.
Andrew Caballero Reynolds | AFP | beautiful pictures
The Department of Homeland Security’s internal watchdog has opened a criminal investigation into the destruction of Secret Service phone messages related to the days surrounding the January 6 Capitol riots. , two sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.
The Secret Service was notified of the investigation Wednesday night by the DHS Inspector General’s office, who ordered the agency to stop any internal investigation into the text messages that had been hacked. deleted, NBC reported.
The House Select Committee investigating the Capitol riots last week issued a subpoena to the Secret Service searching for text messages after learning from IG that the messages were from January 5 and 6. 2021, has been removed, purportedly due to a “device replacement program.”
On Wednesday, The commission said the Secret Service may have violated federal record keeping laws in deleting the messages. That statement came a day after the Secret Service said it only issued a text message string in response. summons.
DHS Deputy Inspector General Gladys Ayala in a letter to Secret Service Director James Murray on Wednesday wrote: “To ensure the integrity of our investigation, the USSS must not engage in any investigative activity. any investigation relating to the collection and preservation of the evidence referred to above.”
“This includes immediately refraining from interviewing potential witnesses, collecting equipment, or taking any other action that may interfere with an ongoing criminal investigation,” Ayala said. write.
The Secret Service in a statement Thursday said it “received a letter from the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General.”
“We notified the Selection Committee on January 6 of the Inspector General’s request and will be conducting a thorough legal review to ensure we are fully cooperating with all surveillance efforts and they are not in conflict with each other,” the Secret Service said.
News of the crime investigation comes hours before the House Select Committee investigating Capitol rights is set to hold a prime-time hearing on President Donald Trump’s inaction today. there.
