By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
A potential scandal may be brewing over at the FBI’s Washington field office, one of the largest and most prominent FBI field offices in the nation.
An internal investigation has been launched into allegations that some high ranking agents worked on an online test together instead of individually, an apparent violation of department policy, sources familiar with the situation said. A bureau lawyer was also rumored to have been involved.
The test was on the bureau’s Domestic Investigation and Operations Guide (DIOG), and is given to all FBI agents including FBI Director Robert Mueller III and to some support staff on the operational side.
The test is an open book exam, but can be time consuming and requires that it be done individually.
The DIOG, according to the FBI website “establishes the FBI’s internal rules and procedures to implement the Attorney General’s Guidelines for Domestic FBI Operations (AGG-Dom), which are posted on the Department of Justice’s website, www.usdoj.gov.”
“These rules, which will be audited and enforced through a rigorous compliance mechanism, are designed to ensure that FBI assessments and investigations are subject to responsible review and approval and do not target anyone or any group on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, or the exercise of any other right guaranteed by the Constitution.”
Michael Kortan, the FBI’s chief spokesman, declined comment.
The FBI, like other federal law enforcement agencies, has historically refrained from commenting on ongoing personnel matters.
