BOOM: FBI Agent Indicted in LaVoy Finicum Shooting

By Maxine Bernstein. An FBI agent has been indicted on federal accusations that he lied about firing at Robert “LaVoy” Finicum last year as police arrested the leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation.

The agent will face allegations of making a false statement with intent to obstruct justice, according to sources familiar with the case.

The indictment stems from a more than yearlong investigation by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Justice. The agent will be identified when he’s summoned to appear in U.S. District Court in Portland [today].

Investigators said a member of the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team fired at Finicum as his 2015 Dodge pickup truck crashed into a snow bank at a roadblock on U.S. 395. . .

As Finicum left his truck, an FBI agent shot twice at Finicum, though none of the hostage team members admitted to discharging their firearms, the Deschutes County sheriff alleged. The county sheriff’s office was tasked with investigating the Finicum shooting.

The Oregon investigators concluded that one agent fired at Finicum’s truck, hitting it in the roof and missing on the second shot. A state trooper later described to investigators seeing two rifle casings in the area where the FBI agents were posted. (Read more about the indictment that arises from Lavoy Finicum Shooting HERE)

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FBI Agent Pleads Not Guilty to Lying About Finicum Shooting

By KGW. An FBI agent charged with lying about shooting at a key figure in last year’s armed occupation of a national wildlife refuge in Oregon has pleaded not guilty to five felony charges.

W. Joseph Astarita briefly appeared in court Wednesday and was released on his own recognizance.

The agent’s shots did not hit Robert “LaVoy” Finicum during a 2016 traffic stop, but soon afterward, Oregon State Police fatally shot the Arizona rancher after he reached toward a handgun in an inner pocket. (Read more from “FBI Agent Pleads Not Guilty to Lying About Finicum Shooting” HERE)

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