Conspiracy: Does rogue FBI agent put freedom of speech at risk?

FBI Special Agent Shay Talley-Bradley represented herself as doing an official investigation for the FBI, investigating Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.). She insisted she was digging into stolen-valor claims — before changing it to looking into his business dealings.

“This should shock the conscience of anybody who believes that the FBI should be, or in fact now has been, renovated into an objective force for good,” FBI whistleblower Steve Friend tells BlazeTV hosts Jill Savage and Matthew Peterson on “Blaze News | The Mandate.”

“The fact of the matter is that the conduct of this agent — the fact that she engaged in an either off-the-books or some sort of coercive investigative matter, a sensitive investigative matter, and involved herself in a deprivation of rights, a color of law violation — speaks volumes of the fact that the rot exists not just at the very tippy top of the FBI,” he continues.

Investigative journalist Steve Baker decided to look into Talley-Bradley’s investigation himself, after the Florida-based special agent interviewed three sources who contributed to recent Blaze News investigative stories on Mills.

Talley-Bradley initially told the sources that she was investigating the stolen-valor claims, before pivoting to his alleged business dealings. While the sources provided her with the contact information of at least five individuals who had direct knowledge of Mills’ military background, she did not follow up with those individuals.

“Are you aware that Blaze Media just came out with a story about you today and your relationship to Congressman Cory Mills?” Baker asked Talley-Bradley in a video captured by Blaze Media.

“I still have no idea what you’re talking about, sir,” Talley-Bradley responded.

“Is it true that you tried to recruit a source as an undercover operative to investigate a Blaze Media journalist?” Baker asked, before the special agent repeated that she had “no idea” what he was talking about.

Friend is disturbed by her conduct and believes it could result in criminal charges.

“The FBI furnishes you credentials,” he comments. “You’re not a secret agent as much as you might be working on things that you think are secret or classified. You’re supposed to furnish those credentials upon request to anyone. You’re supposed to be a public servant, and the fact that she’s denying that, I think, also speaks volumes again to her character.”

“Let’s say she ran background checks on anybody over at the Blaze for investigation of people, for engaging in their First Amendment protected activity — freedom of the press, freedom of speech. That, again, is a violation of database use. That’s another deprivation of rights,” Friend tells Savage and Peterson.

“So, it could be a multiple-count charge criminally against this agent,” he adds.

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