The Secret Service has been asked by the US National Archives to conduct an internal inquiry. The probe is over “the potential unauthorized deletion” of text messages received during the Capitol hill attack last year.
Secret Service told to conduct internal probe over deleted messages
On Tuesday, the National Archives stated that the Secret Service is informed that under federal law, it has to submit an internal investigation report within 30 days. As per reports from Politico, it must ‘explain nation as to why the agency deleted the relevant text messages’. The US Secret Service is responsible for the protection of the president. The news comes days after the watchdog for the Secret service, the Department of Homeland Security inspector general revealed to Congress at a Jan 6 Capitol hill attack hearing that he was told the texts no longer existed when asked to submit a copy.
“This report must include a complete description of the records affected…a statement of the exact circumstances surrounding the deletion of messages [and] all agency actions are taken to salvage, retrieve, or reconstruct the records,” stated the National Archives. Acknowledging this, Anthony Gugliemi, the spokesperson for the Secret Service stated that the agency “respects and supports the important role of the National Archives and Records Administration. In ensuring the preservation of government records. They will have our full cooperation in this review.”
More on the events related to Capitol Attack
According to Secret Service, data on some phones were lost as a part of a “system migration” in January 2021. However, the migration was pre-planned. In an interview, the agency revealed the insinuation of maliciously deleting the messages due to a request, is false. “In fact, the Secret Service has been fully cooperating with the OIG in every respect. Whether it be interviews, documents, emails, or texts,” added Gugliemi.
Additionally, Cassidy Hutchinson is testifying before the US House. She is committing to conducting the inquiry. It is alleging Donald Trump called for Secret Service officials to remove magnetometers at an Ellipse rally to protest the election results. Therefore allowing the armed supporters to approach the stage. Hutchinson is a former White House aide and a key witness to the Capito attack case.