FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed before the Senate Judiciary Committee that the 'Round River' classification used on documents related to the Biden family investigation was fabricated and not supported by FBI policy, echoing concerns raised by Sen. Chuck Grassley in an August letter to the bureau. Patel said an internal investigation is underway into those responsible for creating and using the false classification, and pledged to provide Congress with records previously hidden under this label.
The dispute centers on whether FBI officials improperly concealed or misclassified evidence related to alleged Biden family corruption, with whistleblowers and lawmakers claiming investigative activity was halted or discredited as disinformation.
The controversy over 'Round River' comes amid broader scrutiny of the FBI's handling of politically sensitive investigations, especially those involving the Biden family and Ukraine. Whistleblowers have alleged the bureau sought to suppress negative information about Hunter Biden, while former Attorney General Bill Barr and former U.S. Attorney Scott Brady have questioned whether evidence was withheld from their own probes.
Patel’s Testimony and Grassley’s Allegations
During the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Grassley pressed Patel about the use of the 'Round River' classification and the storage of related records. Patel confirmed that the classification was "basically made up" and that "there was no FBI policy to substantiate such a classification." He told Grassley that the FBI is now conducting an internal investigation through its Inspection Division into those who created and codified the false classification.
"We discovered that there was no FBI policy to substantiate such a classification, and that it was basically made up. So now, working with you and your staff, we are committed to continue to produce [records], on top of the nearly 2,000 pages of documents on Round River that we’ve already produced… We are conducting an internal investigation through the Inspection Division on the individuals who launched and codified this false and fake [classification]."
— Kash Patel, FBI Director
Grassley also raised concerns about FBI files being hidden in 'Prohibited Access' and 'Restricted Access' cases within the bureau's Sentinel case management system. Patel responded that such cases were created "just for that purpose – to evade transparency [and] to evade promulgation of FBI records that should be made available under FOIA and constitutional oversight." Patel stated that he has eliminated these prohibited cases and will work with Congress to produce the relevant records.
Allegations of Withholding Evidence
According to Grassley, the 'Round River' investigation was run out of FBI headquarters in conjunction with the Foreign Influence Task Force (FITF), with whistleblowers alleging it was used to discredit negative information about Hunter Biden and halt investigative activity. Grassley cited concerns that documents were marked with 'Round River' as a classification code, which he called "highly unusual if not outrightly improper."
Former U.S. Attorney Scott Brady, who was tasked by then-Attorney General Bill Barr to vet evidence related to the Bidens and Ukraine, told The Federalist he was unaware of the 'Round River' investigation and said the FBI may have "slow walked" or even "actively interfered" with his probe. Barr told the outlet that withholding evidence from Brady's operation would have been "antithetical to my tasking," calling such actions "sabotage."
Broader FBI Practices and Political Fallout
Declassified intelligence community documents, as reported by Just the News, show that the FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies received derogatory evidence about Joe Biden from 14 informants but ran a secret operation to dismiss the Ukrainian corruption scandal as Russian disinformation. The agencies reportedly labeled Cabinet officials, lawmakers, and journalists as "conduits" for Russian propaganda, while listing Democratic figures as "targets."
Grassley has stated he is not yet drawing conclusions on whether the FBI fully investigated all allegations or swept them aside for political reasons, but maintains that his concerns about improper classification and concealment of records have been validated. Patel has committed to ongoing cooperation with the Senate committee and to producing additional records related to the 'Round River' investigation.
The FBI and officials named in the allegations have not publicly addressed the specific claims regarding the use of the 'Round River' classification or the handling of Biden-related evidence.
