Federal officials found a voice recorder somebody used to document a closed-door government meeting in 2013 but kept the discovery secret for nearly four years, The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Investigative Group has learned.
Federal Election Commission (FEC) officials found the recorder in an agency meeting room July 9, 2013, but didn’t tell the Inspector General (IG) for nearly a month, which hampered the watchdog’s subsequent investigation. The IG also kept the public in the dark by not making its investigative report public until it was recently released in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
“An investigation was opened due to the possibility that the [recorder] may have been placed in an attempt to intercept oral communications in violation of [the law] or make public a commission investigation or enforcement matter in violation of [another law],” said the report, which wasn’t finished until August 2015, two years after the IG began its investigation.
The FEC regulates political campaign finances and investigates potential violations. Illegally recording closed-door federal meetings is punishable by up to five years in prison.
The “investigation was unable to determine the owner of the [recorder] and whether or not the [recorder] was used to attempt to record non-public meetings or confidential discussions,” the report said. “This matter is closed due to the lack of investigative leads.”
An FEC official found the recorder either on or under a chair in the back corner of a hearing room. The recorder was passed between officials and discussed among senior management – including Chairman Ellen Weintraub and Vice Chairman Donald McGahn II – before it was locked in a drawer.
The IG received an anonymous complaint about the device a month later.
“It does not appear that during this series of events did anyone with knowledge of the [recorder] think of or suggest contacting the [IG],” the report said. “The [IG] is unable to reach any conclusions due to multiple people handling the [recording device] and the fact that the [IG] was not notified by management at the time of discovery.”
Investigators suspect the recorder was not used to record FEC discussions illegally, but their rationale is not explained in the report.
This “does not lessen the fact that the potential for abuse existed,” the report said.
Investigators found a continuous, nearly 24-hour recording starting at 9:16 a.m. on June 27, 2013 on the device, which still had half-battery power remaining.
It captured an open meeting, “followed by a closed executive session involving discussions of the termination of an” FEC attorney, the report said. “Most of the rest of the recording consists of background noise.”
Investigators also found numerous folders on the device, but their names were redacted.
The watchdog recommended the FEC issue a statement “regarding the importance of reporting to the [IG] all issues within its jurisdiction,” the report said. It’s unclear if the FEC complied.
“I am not aware of any additional information,” FEC spokeswoman Judith Ingram told TheDCNF.
The IG declined to comment.
Follow Ethan on Twitter. Send tips to ethan@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.