Crime Experts Reportedly Will Probe FBI Lab
The FBI crime laboratory, accused of sloppy science and slanting evidence, will be investigated by a worldwide panel of crime experts, it was reported Friday.
The Justice Department will announce the investigation next week, said the “CBS Evening News,” quoting law enforcement sources.
The charges were first made by FBI agent Frederic Whitehurst, who says he was pressured to distort findings in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, CBS said.
The investigation also follows complaints from prosecutors in the 1992 Ruby Ridge, Ida., shootout that the lab was inept, the network said.
The lab is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Washington and has been credited with solving such cases as the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing.
Lab director Mil Ahlerich acknowledged that the unit is under growing strain but defended its work, saying that “we’ve never lost a piece of evidence.”
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