FBI agents say investigations on hold due to shutdown: 'There are no funds to pay for grand jury subpoenas'

Agents at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed this week that some investigations have been put on hold due to President Donald Trump's government shutdown.

In a "Voices from the Field" report released on Tuesday, the FBI Agents Association (FBIAA) documented the "real consequences of the government shutdown."

"On the child exploitation side, as an [undercover employee], I've had to put pervs on standby," one agent from the Southern Region told FBIAA. "This just puts children in jeopardy."

One agent in the Central Region said that investigation into MS-13 gang members had been hampered because there are no Spanish speakers in the division.

An agent working counter-intelligence cases in the Western region said that the "shutdown has eliminated any ability to operate."

"It's bad enough to work without pay, but we can only conduct administrative functions," the agent explained. "The fear is our enemies know they can run freely."

"The operational impacts of the shutdown are immeasurable," an agent in the Northeast Region insisted. "We have postponed the indictment of subjects due to the shutdown."

According to a counter-terrorism agent, some grand jury subpoenas have been put on hold.

"I am already starting to see a negative impact of the shutdown on the pace of our operations and investigations," the agent said. "Particularly, the United States Attorney's Office is unable to issue grand jury subpoenas for financial institutions... Most of our counter-terrorism cases have a strong financial angle."

Other agents echoed concerns about grand jury subpoenas.

"I have been advised by our United States Attorney's Office that because of the shutdown that are no funds allocated to pay for grand jury subpoenas," the agent pointed out. "This is causing the affected investigation to be put on hold until the shutdown ends."

Read the entire report here.