Attorney General William Barr confirmed on Thursday that there are currently over 500 investigations being carried out by the Department of Justice against those who have been involved in widespread rioting over the last month, as reported by The Daily Caller.
Barr made the announcement on Senator Ted Cruz’s (R-Texas) podcast “The Verdict,” stating that “we’ve had scores of indictments so far for such things as arson, destruction of federal property,” and that they are “picking up pace.”
As has been previously reported, there have already been over 70 indictments across the country on federal charges. Barr’s comments come nearly one month after President Trump officially declared Antifa a domestic terrorist organization, which gave the federal government greater leeway to pursue federal charges against those involved in the violence. Barr had previously confirmed that all 56 regional offices of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force would be assisting the Justice Department in its nationwide efforts, declaring that “it is time to stop watching the violence and to confront and stop it.”
This week, President Trump announced that he would be signing an executive order that would fast-track the federal government’s ability to prosecute anyone caught vandalizing or destroying a federal monument, utilizing powers previously granted under the Veteran’s Memorial Preservation Act.