Latching on to Roger Stone's own claim the FBI went overboard in how it arrested him last Friday, Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is asking the Bureau to provide his committee a briefing on how it conducted its law enforcement operation.
Graham sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday expressing concerns about the "manner" in which Stone was arrested, including the number of agents involved in taking Stone into custody, "the tactics employed" and the timing of the arrest.
The GOP chairman asked the FBI to brief the Judiciary Committee by Feb. 5.
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"The American public has had enough of the media circus that surrounds the Special Counsel's investigation," Grassley wrote in his letter Wednesday. "Yet, the manner of this arrest appears to have only added to the spectacle. Accordingly, I write to seek justification for the tactics used and the timing of the arrest of Mr. Stone."
In addition to requesting the briefing, Graham in the letter also asked Wray to provide written answers to a series of questions, including why it was necessary to arrest Stone at his home early in the morning and whether the manner of his arrest was consistent with the arrests of "similarly charged individuals."
WaPo:
Former federal prosecutor Kenneth White said the traditional reasons federal law enforcement would use the level of force seen at Stone’s home are twofold: Authorities have credible evidence the arrestee has firearms on the premises or will destroy evidence if they don’t enter quickly.
White said Stone’s arrest suggests that the Special Counsel’s Office believed “there was a danger he would destroy evidence if he was arrested in any way that gave him a way to do so or an opportunity to surrender.”
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Stone was arrested just after 6 a.m. Friday. Although the arrest may not have taken any special judicial permission, White said, “the level of force they used rather than having him surrender, suggests they thought he’d destroy evidence.”
Ross Gaffney, a former FBI supervisory special agent, agreed that an arrest after 6 a.m. isn’t considered an extraordinary circumstance.
“It could be they worried about destruction of evidence,” he said. “Overwhelming show of force by an armed SWAT team at zero-dark-30 would dissuade anyone who had an inkling to act out from doing so.”
Graham also questioned whether "usual procedures" for obtaining warrants were followed in the case, whether the special counsel's office released the indictment to the press before notifying Stone's attorneys and whether anyone in law enforcement alerted the media ahead of the arrest.
CNN, which obtained exclusive video of Stone's arrest, already has explained how a crew came to be in the right place at the right time.
Graham requests FBI briefing on Roger Stone arrest (The Hill)
‘FBI! Open the door!’: The tactics behind the armed agents at Roger Stone’s home (WaPo)