A new podcast reveals the FBI planted an informant in Denver anti-racism protests in 2020 with a mission to incite violence.
The revealing details come as predominantly Black protesters have combatted politically motivated attacks for years their protests were inherently violent.
The revelation was outlined in a podcast released on Jan. 30 where it gives listeners a peek into the FBI’s efforts to “infiltrate and undermine the racial justice movement” in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the string of protests that followed.
The “Alphabet Boys” podcast reveals details of secret investigations from various government agencies. The podcast was produced by journalist Trevor Aaronson. He claims the FBI recruited Michael Windecker, a white convicted felon in his late 40s, to entrap gullible protesters into carrying out criminal plots hatched by him.
Although researchers from Harvard University say Black Lives Matter protests were largely nonviolent, protesters have faced years of accusations they incited violence as images of damaged and burned property consumed television screens during the summer of 2020.
Denver activist Zebbodios Hall, who is Black, described to The Intercept his impression of Windecker upon meeting him in 2020: “He was just this badass dude talking about how he worked in a foreign military and how he was for the Black Lives Matter movement.”
At first some of Windecker’s fellow protesters were skeptical, but he repeatedly would cite his time in prison as proof he was down for the cause.
“He de-escalated any type of suspicion because he would start flashing his prison badge,” Bryce Shelby, another Black protester, said.
Both Hall and Shelby quickly became targets for Windecker after earning their trust.
The podcast revealed Windecker was hired by the FBI under the premise the informant had information the FBI felt was useful regarding incendiary rhetoric spewed by some protesters. The…
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