BREAKING: FBI whistleblowers Garret O’Boyle and Steve Friend reinstated

Two FBI whistleblowers, Garret O’Boyle and Steve Friend, have been reinstated, according to journalist Breanna Morello. The pair were previously suspended after testifying before Congress about what they described as political weaponization within the bureau.

O’Boyle and Friend, along with other agents, had accused the FBI of working improperly with Bank of America and of monitoring parents who raised concerns at local school board meetings.

“I am disappointed and I am angry that I have to be here to testify about the weaponization of the FBI and DOJ,” O’Boyle told lawmakers in a 2023 testimony, alleging retaliation against employees who spoke up.

Their return follows efforts from Empower Oversight, Morello said, and support from Director Kash Patel, Deputy Director Dan Bongino, and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who had pressed the agency on whistleblower protections.

The reinstatement news comes after years of controversy surrounding FBI whistleblowers who testified before Congress about what they described as political weaponization inside the bureau.

O’Boyle, a U.S. Army veteran and former FBI special agent, told lawmakers he was “wrongfully suspended” despite an exemplary record, claiming the bureau smeared him and left his family homeless after he accepted a reassignment. “They see what becomes of whistleblowers; how the FBI destroys their careers, suspends them under false pretenses, takes their security clearances and pay with no true options for real recourse,” O’Boyle said.

Friend raised concerns over the bureau’s handling of January 6 cases, saying case management rules were ignored and SWAT teams were deployed in ways that risked public safety. He testified that his security clearance was suspended soon after his disclosures, leaving him without pay and under pressure to resign.

Another whistleblower, Marcus Allen, also told Congress he was suspended after forwarding information that questioned aspects of the January 6 narrative. He said the FBI accused him of disloyalty, leaving his family without health insurance. Allen has since filed a civil rights lawsuit alleging retaliation.

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