The disclosure of 274 FBI special agents at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 has set off a firestorm of controversy.

FBI Director Kash Patel insists that the agents only did “crowd control.”

President Donald J. Trump says he wants to identify all of the agents, who he said were “probably acting as Agitators and Insurrectionists.”

After 56 months of not disclosing the scope of the FBI’s presence at the Capitol on Jan. 6, a recently leaked report from the House Select Subcommittee to Investigate the Remaining Questions Surrounding January 6 has turned into an online free-for-all.

“It was just revealed that the FBI had secretly placed, against all Rules, Regulations, Protocols, and Standards, 274 FBI Agents into the Crowd just prior to, and during, the January 6th Hoax,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“I want to know who each and every one of these so-called ‘Agents’ are, and what they were up to on that now ‘Historic’ Day,” Trump added.

More than 360 FBI special agents and other staff from the Washington Field Office responded to the rapidly developing events at the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6.

This included 274 special agents and 89 intelligence analysts and support staff, the leaked report says.

The professional staff did not deploy to the Capitol.

A report issued in December 2024 reported 26 FBI informants at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Four of those informants went into the building.

After that news garnered millions of views on social media, Patel went to Fox News to “clarify” that the 274 agents were only there for “crowd control.”

“Agents were sent into a crowd-control mission after the riot was declared by Metro Police – something that goes against FBI standards,” Patel told Fox News.

“This was the failure of a corrupt leadership that lied to Congress and to the American people about what really happened,” Patel said.

Metropolitan Police broadcast declaration of a riot over police radio at 2:22 p.m.

Patel’s attempt to tamp down the online furor from former Jan. 6 defendants who tried to get this information in their criminal cases didn’t work.

Many said they don’t believe Patel’s explanation.

“Where is the film of one agent doing crowd control? Where is one affidavit in court?” asked former Jan. 6 defendant Larry Brock Jr.

“This story doesn’t fly. You definitely need a better PR team. There are cameras everywhere in D.C. Show us the videos of the Hoover building emptying,” Brock said.

While there is ample video evidence of SWAT teams from the FBI, ATF, U.S. Marshals, Park Police, and other agencies sweeping the Capitol after 3 p.m., that is not the case with plainclothes FBI personnel.

Their presence was most noticeable after 6 p.m., when no protesters were left in the Capitol Building.

The Department of Justice Office of Inspector General said there were no FBI undercover agents in the crowds on Jan. 6.

That category is distinct from agents who are described as plainclothes.

In the field, plainclothes agents would normally wear their badges on a lanyard or their belts.

Some wear blue FBI windbreaker jackets with “FBI” stamped in yellow on the back.

Patel’s answer seemed a far cry from the expectations he set up in a May interview with Maria Bartiromo on Fox News.

“We’ve got answers coming. We just found a trove of information, and it’s on its way to Capitol Hill right now,” Patel said.

“You’re getting answers on January 6. You’re getting answers on what sourcing was utilized, what money was utilized, how many assets were utilized, who made those decisions — you’re getting it,” he said.

When Bartiromo asked, “Were there FBI agents under cover egging people on?” Patel replied, “Like I said, that answer is coming, and it’s on its way to Congress.”

No “trove of information” has been released since Patel’s interview in May.

Former Jan. 6 defendants and attorneys found the 274-agent disclosure especially troubling.

The DOJ and FBI refused to provide that information as part of case discovery in the nearly 1,600 criminal cases brought by the DOJ.

“I personally made over a dozen requests … for this stuff,” defense attorney Bradford Geyer told Blaze News.

Geyer said the failure of the FBI and U.S. Department of Justice to disclose this information during hundreds of cases taints the entire massive prosecution effort.

“This was a mass entrapment scheme that was run and operated by the government,” Geyer said.

“We know that that’s what happened, but we’re not quite there yet. If we established that that happened, I bet most people would agree that all cases should be dismissed.”

U.S. Sen. Mike Lee wrote on X: “Christopher Wray concealed this from us for four years. This is a big deal.”

John Strand, who went to prison on Jan. 6 charges after his trial in Washington, D.C., said the disclosures need to spark action.

“Today’s revelations prove it: Jan 6 wasn’t justice, it was entrapment,” Strand said.

“FBI provocateurs in the crowd. Peaceful Americans framed. Lives destroyed. The real criminals are those who weaponized our government. They must be investigated, prosecuted, and held accountable,” Strand added.

The 56-month concealment of this information represents one of the biggest cover-ups in modern American history.

Every January 6 defendant had the right to know about FBI presence during discovery.

The refusal to disclose this violated basic due process rights for nearly 1,600 criminal cases.

Defense attorneys requested this exact information repeatedly and were denied every time.

Patel’s “crowd control” explanation doesn’t match the lack of video evidence showing such activities.

If agents were doing legitimate crowd control, there would be extensive footage and documentation.

The distinction between “undercover agents” and “plainclothes agents” appears designed to create confusion.

Trump’s demand to identify each agent shows his recognition that this information matters deeply.

The timing of the riot declaration at 2:22 p.m. doesn’t explain why agents were already embedded in crowds.

Former defendants correctly point out that cameras covered every angle of the Capitol that day.

The absence of footage showing 274 agents doing crowd control undermines the official narrative.

Geyer’s characterization as “mass entrapment” reflects what many suspected all along.

Christopher Wray’s concealment of this information for four years represents deliberate obstruction.

The FBI’s presence gave protesters false assurance that their actions were acceptable.

Intermixing respectable-looking federal agents with crowds influenced psychology and behavior.

Patel’s promised “trove of information” from May never materialized, raising questions about his credibility.