"FBI Says It Broke Its Rules in Inquiry of Keystone Pipeline Opponents"

"WASHINGTON — The Federal Bureau of Investigation violated its own guidelines in 2013 when it investigated environmental advocates who opposed the Keystone XL pipeline, the F.B.I. acknowledged on Tuesday.

The bureau had received information about plots to damage part of the existing Keystone pipeline, which moves oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, according to federal law enforcement officials. The proposed Keystone XL pipeline would create a shortcut for a significant section of the system.

As part of the investigation, agents at the F.B.I.’s field office in Houston communicated with sources, who gathered information from environmental advocates. The agents also conducted database searches on the advocates and reviewed local law enforcement reports about them. But the agents had not received approval from the head of their office and from its chief lawyer."

Michael S. Schmidt reports for the New York Times May 12, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"FBI Spied on Keystone Protesters, Worked With Pipeline Builder TransCanada" (Aljazeera America)

"Revealed: FBI Violated Its Own Rules While Spying on Keystone XL Opponents" (Guardian)

"Keystone Activists Enraged By Report That FBI Spied on Them" (Mashable)

"Canadian Mining Company Spied on Opponents And Activists in Brazil" (Guardian)