An Associated Press investigation found the FBI has received nearly allegations of sexual misconduct since the bureau announced in it had launched an agency-wide crackdown. The FBI, for its part, said the increase shows its reforms are making it easier to report misconduct.
The FBI declined to provide details about the incidents, citing federal privacy laws and internal guidelines. A monthslong AP investigation, however, revealed that the incidents ranged from sexual assault to agents paying for sex at massage parlors. Some allegations were so serious they resulted in criminal investigations or charges. Late last year, an FBI agent in Maryland, Eduardo Valdivia, 40, was charged with sexually assaulting two women he contacted through social media with a promise to give them free tattoos and modeling work.
The victims usually were agency employees, though others were women whom agents came across during investigations or met socially. At least a dozen sexual misconduct allegations involved supervisors, the AP found, including at least one top agent. The FBI determined more than half of the claims warranted internal investigations, statistics show, though the bureau refused to disclose how many resulted in terminations or other discipline.
Wray, a Republican appointed by then-President Donald Trump in , spent years under withering attacks for various investigations involving Trump. Rather than be fired, Wray stepped down a day before Trump took office on Jan. Trump has tapped Kash Patel, a strident supporter and former federal prosecutor, to take over as the next director of the FBI. Patel's spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment on how he would tackle the issue of sexual misconduct. His confirmation hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
In interviews, more than a dozen current and former FBI agents said that male-dominated culture would be the hardest to change. Victims, several of whom spoke on the condition they not be named, and advocates told AP that many women remain reluctant to come forward for fear of retaliation. Others retire before they can be punished. The FBI has spent the last decade seeking to address its masculine culture, in part by boosting its number of female agents. Those changes were implemented after the AP exposed a pattern of senior FBI officials skirting discipline and retiring even after internal inquiries determined they committed brazen misconduct, including a senior official who harassed eight female subordinates.
