FBI investigation of alleged child predator was ‘halted’ to hunt down January 6 rioters, court docs show

An FBI investigation into an alleged child predator that was halted after the Capitol riots of Jan. 6, 2021, languished for almost three years before the man was finally apprehended in October 2023, according to court documents.

Brogan Welsh allegedly communicated with an undercover FBI agent in December 2020 about having sexual relations with a 9-year-old boy, but the investigation stopped after the Capitol riots, according to the criminal complaint. The Anchorage FBI later caught Welsh allegedly living with a 10-year-old boy in Alaska in October 2023, through a different investigation, and arrested Welsh on suspicion of distribution of child pornography.

The #FBI is still seeking information regarding people who committed violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Visit https://t.co/AWQVD3Hx3Y to see photos and videos from current cases, and if you recognize someone, submit a tip at https://t.co/t8G7LO4hxu. pic.twitter.com/zxJuYvr8zD

— FBI Washington Field (@FBIWFO) August 18, 2021

“On January 6, 2021, FBI, Washington Field Office [WFO], this investigation was halted due to events that occurred at the United States Capitol Building that day,” the documents state.

The FBI in 2020 posed as the father of a 9-year-old boy and communicated with an online user going by “gayboy69freak” for several weeks, according to the documents. The user “expressed interest in traveling to Washington, DC to engage in sexual contact with the purported 9-year-old.”

Furthermore, the user sent the undercover agent a video of “a prepubescent minor male being anally penetrated by an adult male’s erect penis,” according to the documents.

The FBI WFO in 2020 identified “gayboy69freak” as a man named Brogan Welsh, but did not finish the investigation after the Capitol riots took place.

The Anchorage FBI found Welsh in an investigation it did not realize was related to the previous WFO investigation, according to the documents. When carrying out a search warrant on another suspected predator’s phone in August 2023, the Anchorage FBI allegedly found sexual messages from Welsh about minors.

The Anchorage FBI executed a search warrant in October and allegedly found Brogan residing with a 10-year-old boy in Alaska, according to the documents. They also found a slew of tiny sex toys.

“Based on the above information, there is probable cause to believe that Brogan Welsh committed the following offense: Distribution of Child Pornography,” the documents conclude.

“In the immediate aftermath of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, WFO resources were surged to support the FBI’s response and investigation,” the FBI WFO told The Daily Wire. “However, WFO continued to diligently pursue its ongoing investigations. While we can’t speak to the specific circumstances of this case, the FBI takes all crimes against children investigations extremely seriously, and we must follow the facts where they lead and collect enough evidence to pursue prosecution.”

The FBI National Press Office and WFO did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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