Ex-FBI special agent explains Afghan vetting failures in wake of National Guard ambush: 'Ticking time bomb'

The ambush shooting of two National Guard members near the White House is fueling fresh scrutiny of the vetting of Afghan evacuees, with former FBI special agent Nicole Parker telling Fox News Digital the screening process during the rushed 2021 withdrawal was essentially a "free-for-all."

Tens of thousands of Afghans were evacuated to the U.S. in the wake of the withdrawal and subsequent Taliban takeover of the country. The chaotic nature of the operation raised concerns at the time from Republicans, and in official reports, that some evacuees were not properly vetted and could have catastrophic consequences.

"They said it is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode because we've just allowed all of these people into our country," Parker told Fox News Digital.

In August 2022, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., revealed that a whistleblower said 324 individuals had entered with derogatory information, while a 2022 report by the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) separately found the department failed to properly vet Afghan evacuees entering the U.S., creating potential national security risks.

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Parker told Fox News Digital that FBI agents worked with Department of Defense contractors in foreign countries to screen Afghans, but the State Department repeatedly overrode security concerns.

"There were individuals that were not being recommended to come to the United States, yet they were being overridden by the Biden State Department," Parker said. "Initially, it was a free-for-all and no one was being vetted."

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the claims.

The OIG report noted that during the evacuation, the Pentagon moved Afghan evacuees to a network of temporary staging bases known as "lily pads" in countries like Germany, Qatar, Spain and Italy. Evacuees stayed there only days or weeks as U.S. officials attempted rapid screening and collected biographic and biometric data before sending them to the United States.

The inspector general found the lily pads were rushed, understaffed and inconsistent, leading to major documentation gaps, missing records and vetting shortcuts.

Jason Pack, the chief executive officer at Media Rep Global Strategies, a public relations and crisis communications firm, told Fox News Digital that "it was a massive humanitarian operation, but it also carried unavoidable risk."

"That evacuation moved more than seventy thousand people into the country in a short period of time," Pack said. "Records were scattered, databases were incomplete, and screening teams were processing people at a pace that made perfect vetting impossible. Cases like this force investigators to go back and examine those files with fresh eyes."

Under OAW, DHS used humanitarian parole - normally approved on a case-by-case basis - to quickly process tens of thousands of Afghans into the U.S., bypassing the special immigrant visa (SIV) and refugee programs, which can take years.

While the administration touted a multilayered process using multiple Pentagon, DHS and FBI databases, the audit found "critical data" was not always available and that evacuees were admitted without full vetting.

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"Many times it felt like anyone was allowed to come into the United States from Afghanistan, regardless of who they were," Parker said. "What happened to our National Guard service members is a direct result of their lack of vetting."

Parker said it was almost impossible to vet evacuees because they arrived with no verifiable documents or records, leaving nothing to run through intelligence or criminal databases, putting citizens, law enforcement and the National Guard at risk. The two West Virginia National Guard members remain in critical condition after being shot just blocks from the White House.

"America is full of people we do not know. We don't know who they are, where they are, or what sleeper cells are here," she said. 

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro on Thursday slammed the vetting process that allowed suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, to enter the U.S. through the Biden administration's Operation Allies Welcome. Pirro said that he had been living in Washington state with his wife and five children before driving cross-country to reach the nation's capital.

"Whatever their cause or motive may be, we should not have to live in fear in the nation's capital, especially by one who came here from a foreign country, and through a process that was so absurd that he came through and was released into this country," Pirro said. "This is what happens in this country when people who are not properly vetted are let in."

FBI Director Kash Patel echoed her words, saying they want to highlight the alleged lax vetting process.

"This individual is in this country for one reason and one reason alone, because of the disastrous withdrawal from the Biden administration and the failure to vet in any way, shape or form this individual and countless others," Patel said.

Meanwhile, a Pentagon inspector general report in February 2022 revealed that at least 50 evacuees were brought to the U.S. whose information indicated "potentially serious security concerns," and that officials were unable to locate dozens with derogatory information.

Hawley also uncovered an August 2021 email directive instructing U.S. officials to prioritize filling evacuation flights and to "err on the side of excess," allowing passengers to board even if their qualifications were not completely uncertain. Then-FBI Director Christopher Wray said the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Forces were actively investigating a number of Afghan evacuees as a result.

In a 2021 Senate hearing, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas insisted that "well over 99 percent" of evacuees were screened and vetted before boarding flights - but later acknowledged under questioning that he could not guarantee that standard applied in every case.

If the Afghans weren't vetted before getting on the plane, Mayorkas said, they were "screened and vetted while in flight and were placed in immigration enforcement proceedings and in removal proceedings" if any derogatory information was deduced.

When further pressed and reminded by Graham that he was under oath, Mayorkas said, "No. No, I can't speak to that." 

Fox News' Brooke Singman, Adam Shaw and Pat Ward contributed to this report.