In late 2011, a FOIA request was submitted to the FBI for
all its records on WikiLeaks. The FBI responded that it had no records. Not
believing the FBI’s response, a FOIA appeal was submitted to the Department of
Justice Office of Information Policy which upheld the FBI’s search and its
findings.
Still disbelieving the FBI/DOJ responses, a FOIA request was
submitted to the Department of Justice Office of Information Policy for its
records regarding the aforementioned appeal. The DOJ OIP responded and reveals
that not only does the FBI have WikiLeaks records, but the FBI/DOJ lied about
having records. WikiLeaks’ records are tucked away in other files, thus are
considered for cross-references and not responsive because the request was for “all
records” and didn’t use the magic words “cross-references.”