An Inspector General report released yesterday finds that the FBI is not reviewing and translating all of its evidence in terror cases.
The 131-page report, issued by Justice Department IG Glenn Fine, examines the FBI’s Foreign Language Translation Program. It finds that from 2006 to 2008, the FBI failed to review 31 percent of the electronic files collected for counterterrorism, counterintelligence and criminal investigations.
Additionally, for counterterrorism and counterintelligence investigations from 2003 to 2008, and criminal investigations between 2005 and 2008, 25 percent of audio files collected were not reviewed. Of these unreviewed files, 1 percent of audio and text files, and 72 percent of the electronic files, were in English. In 2008, 740 hours of unreviewed audio (in English) were a part of two of the FBI’s highest-priority counterterrorism investigations.
The report concludes: “Not reviewing such material increases the risk that the FBI will not detect information in its possession that may be important to its counterterrorism and counterintelligence efforts.”
In response, the FBI has said that the report exaggerates the number of audio files that have gone unreviewed, and in fact it only amounts to about 4,770 hours — one-tenth of IG estimates.
In a written response to the report, FBI Deputy Director John Pistole reportedly said that the FBI uses “advanced technology to assist in the identification” of pertinent intelligence, and to review every single file would be a waste of time and resources.
