{"id":2593514,"date":"2026-04-21T19:55:59","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T23:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-doj-investigating-southern-poverty-law-center-for-use-of-paid-informants\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T19:58:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T23:58:52","slug":"report-doj-investigating-southern-poverty-law-center-for-use-of-paid-informants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-doj-investigating-southern-poverty-law-center-for-use-of-paid-informants\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ Probing SPLC For &#8216;Use Of Paid Informants&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Freport-doj-investigating-southern-poverty-law-center-for-use-of-paid-informants%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2593514&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A federal investigation is reportedly targeting the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) over its use of paid informants to infiltrate extremist groups, a growth disclosed by the Associated Press as SPLC leadership indicated the matter is a criminal investigation.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The Department of Justice released an indictment charging the SPLC with multiple offenses, including wire fraud for secretly funneling more than $3 million in donated funds to members of white supremacist and extremist groups.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; SPLC CEO Bryan Fair said the institution previously paid informants to infiltrate groups it designated as extremist to gather information on their activities and pass it to local and federal law enforcement, with operations kept quiet to protect informants\u2019 safety. He implied the practise dates back to the civil rights era and claimed it saved lives.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The piece argues that while SPLC allegedly funneled money to racist groups, it simultaneously led campaigns to portray mainstream conservative organizations as violent or extremist, citing cases such as the 2012 shooting attempt at the Family Research Council (FRC) and the use of a SPLC hate map to target anti-LGBTQ organizations.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article discusses SPLC\u2019s broader targeting of conservative groups, including Turning Point USA, noting a 2025 SPLC piece that described TPUSA as sowing fear and division and labeling TPUSA as part of the hard right in its 2024 Year in Hate and Extremism report.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It also notes SPLC\u2019s designation of Alliance Defending Freedom as a hate group and mentions that FBI Director Kash Patel severed ties with the SPLC, accusing the group of having become a partisan smear machine.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The piece concludes by noting updates to the story and provides author information about Shawn Fleetwood, a The Federalist staff writer and investigative journalist.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/southern-poverty-law-center\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Southern Poverty Law Center<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/splc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SPLC<\/a>) over its &ldquo;use of paid informants to infiltrate extremist groups.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Associated Press (AP) <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/southern-poverty-law-center-criminal-investigation-db7fdcf9baa0d1b24b8f1e1f2cebc0be\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">disclosed<\/a> the explosive development on Tuesday, when it reported comments from the leftist group&rsquo;s leadership indicating that &ldquo;it&rsquo;s the subject of a criminal investigation&rdquo; by federal officials.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Although we don&rsquo;t know all the details, the focus appears to be on the SPLC&rsquo;s prior use of paid confidential informants to gather credible intelligence on extremely violent groups,&rdquo; SPLC CEO Bryan Fair said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Hours later, the DOJ <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TheJusticeDept\/status\/2046697802500038958?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">released<\/a> an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/media\/1437146\/dl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">indictment<\/a> charging the SPLC with multiple offenses, including wire fraud for secretly funneling donated funds to those groups. According to the DOJ, the funds totaled more than $3 million.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&#128680;HAPPENING NOW: Justice Department announces indictment against Southern Poverty Law Center (&#8220;SPLC&#8221;). Our indictment alleges SPLC secretly funneled MORE THAN $3 MILLION in funds to members of white supremacist and extremist groups. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Ifpda94f7D\">pic.twitter.com\/Ifpda94f7D<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheJusticeDept\/status\/2046704517119377577?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 21, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As described by the AP, Fair said that the SPLC &ldquo;previously paid informants to infiltrate&rdquo; groups the SPLC designated as extremist to &ldquo;gather information on their activities&rdquo; and pass it on to &ldquo;local and federal law enforcement.&rdquo; He further contended that this infiltration program was used to &ldquo;monitor threats of violence,&rdquo; and that details about its operations were &ldquo;kept quiet to protect the safety of informants,&rdquo; according to the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>Fair seemingly indicated that the SPLC had been using informants since the aftermath of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-snaps-at-civil-rights-leaders-in-leaked-call\/\" title=\"Biden Snaps at Civil Rights Leaders in Leaked Call\">civil rights movement<\/a>, and referenced the violence of that era as justification for the use of informants. He claimed the group has &ldquo;saved lives.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>But even as the SPLC allegedly shuttled millions to actual racists, it coordinated a campaign to paint numerous mainstream conservative organizations as violent and racist extremists.<\/p>\n<p>That breathless smear campaign against conservative groups has gotten at least one person shot. As The Federalist&rsquo;s Jordan Boyd previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2020\/08\/24\/rnc-denounces-splc-as-radical-organization-that-inspired-shooting-at-conservative-organization-eight-years-ago\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, &ldquo;On August 15, 2012, a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefdrlst.wpengine.com\/2017\/08\/15\/5-year-frc-shooting-anniversary-offers-study-presidential-reactions-hate-crimes\/\">man<\/a>&nbsp;armed with a 9mm handgun, 50 rounds of ammunition, and 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches, arrived at the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/family-research-council\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Family Research Council<\/a>, a notably conservative group, headquarters in Washington with the intent to &lsquo;kill as many as possible and smear the Chick-Fil-A sandwiches in victims&rsquo; faces, and kill the guard.&rsquo;&rdquo; While the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-dc\/pr\/virginia-man-sentenced-25-years-prison-shooting-security-guard-family-research\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">attempted killer<\/a> &mdash; who shot the group&rsquo;s security guard &mdash; was subdued and nobody died, he confessed to law enforcement &ldquo;that he was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-doj-investigating-southern-poverty-law-center-for-spying-on-the-conservative-groups-it-slanders\/\" title=\"DOJ Probing ... Infiltration Scheme Against Conservative Orgs\">targeting anti-gay organizations<\/a> as designated by the SPLC.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The shooter reportedly found the FRC on the SPLC&rsquo;s online&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.splcenter.org\/hate-map?state=DC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hate map<\/a>&nbsp;which claims that the council&rsquo;s &lsquo;anti-LGBTQ&rsquo; ideology is the reason for its designation as a hate group and began forming his plan,&rdquo; Boyd wrote.<\/p>\n<p>The FRC is hardly the only conservative-leaning organization the SPLC has <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/12\/after-charlie-kirks-murder-there-can-be-no-more-both-sides-ism\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">targeted<\/a> with its anti-conservative &ldquo;extremist&rdquo; smear campaign.<\/p>\n<p>Months before his assassination, allegedly at the hands of a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/17\/abc-news-matt-gutman-fabricates-quote-to-make-alleged-kirk-assassin-look-more-touching-human\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&ldquo;trans&rdquo;-loving lunatic<\/a>, the SPLC accused Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk&rsquo;s group of flirting with so-called &ldquo;white Christian supremacy.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.splcenter.org\/resources\/reports\/turning-point-usa-case-study-hard-right-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">May 2025 SPLC article<\/a>, author Rachael Fugardi claimed that &ldquo;Turning Point USA&rsquo;s primary strategy is sowing and exploiting fear that white Christian supremacy is under attack by nefarious actors, including immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community and civil rights activists.&rdquo; She further contended that TPUSA is seeking to &ldquo;sow fear and division to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/group-asks-irs-to-probe-splcs-left-wing-political-activity\/\" title=\"... Asks IRS To Probe ...&#039;s Left...Wing &#039;Political Activity&#039;\">enforce social hierarchies rooted<\/a> in supremacism,&rdquo; which she said &ldquo;is emblematic of the hard right&rsquo;s broader political project to destroy our foundational democratic principles and institutions.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The SPLC&rsquo;s &ldquo;Year in Hate and Extremism 2024&rdquo; report described TPUSA as a &ldquo;Case Study of the Hard Right in 2024,&rdquo; according to the AP. <\/p>\n<p><strong>[READ:[READ:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/10\/20\/splc-lead-attorney-apparently-participated-in-unlawful-capitol-anti-israel-protest\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SPLC Lead Attorney Apparently Participated In Unlawful Capitol Anti-Israel Protest<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>SPLC has also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.splcenter.org\/resources\/extremist-files\/alliance-defending-freedom\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">deployed<\/a> its &ldquo;designated hate group&rdquo; smear against Alliance Defending Freedom, a legal organization whose work includes <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/01\/09\/at-scotus-female-athletes-gear-up-to-protect-womens-sports-from-leftists-trans-agenda\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">protecting<\/a> women&rsquo;s sports from trans-identifying men and <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/11\/21\/pro-life-center-takes-its-fight-against-democrat-lawfare-to-the-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">defending<\/a> pro-life centers against Democrat lawfare.<\/p>\n<p>FBI Director Kash Patel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/fbi-cuts-ties-leftist-group-put-turning-point-usa-its-hate-map-before-kirk-assassination\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">severed<\/a> the federal agency&rsquo;s ties with the SPLC last year. The director noted that the far-left group &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >long ago abandoned civil rights work<\/a> and turned into a partisan smear machine.&rdquo;  <\/p>\n<p><em>This article has been updated since publication.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DOJ probes SPLC over paid informant use<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2593515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SPLC.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[73160,78283,78284,15303],"class_list":["post-2593514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-civil-rights-2","tag-doj-probe-2","tag-paid-informants-2","tag-splc"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SPLC.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2593514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2593514"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2593514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2593518,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2593514\/revisions\/2593518"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2593515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2593514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2593514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2593514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}