Pro-Life Group Says FBI Infiltrated And Secretly Recorded Their Meeting

The Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising has alleged that a FBI informant attended one of their meetings wearing a mask and recorded it before giving it to the FBI to use in federal court against PAAU. The group says they were planning pro-life “rescues” at abortion facilities and the informant “arrived late to the meeting, was wearing a black mask, and left early.” PAAU made headlines last year after discovering the bodies of five late-term babies outside a Washington, D.C. abortion clinic. The FBI recording of the January meeting is now being used in court to allege that PAAU director Lauren Handy was violating her terms of release after charges of violating the FACE Act.

PAAU posted to Twitter, “The FBI is working overtime to unjustly target peaceful nonviolent anti-abortion activism that abides by federal law!” They also posted a lengthy Twitter thread which reads:

The prosecutors attempted to claim this recording of Handy discussing plans for nonviolent direct actions in and around abortion businesses was a violation of her terms of release in her ongoing federal case which stipulate she is prohibited from entering abortion centers.

The meeting hosted by PAAU where the recording was captured took place on Thursday, January 19th, 2023 at the Watergate Hotel in Washington D.C. While everyone who attended was vetted at the time of registration, there was only one individual who wasn’t personally known by anyone in attendance, the name he used was “Eric Mike Santos”.

“Santos” was initially vetted and appeared in tagged photos on Facebook with other known pro-life activists but has since deleted his Facebook account. He arrived late to the meeting, was wearing a black mask, and left early, likely a strategy to avoid engagement by any of the legitimate attendees. It is for these reasons and others that “Santos” is believed to be an informant with the FBI and the source of the recording.

Here is the photo they captured of “Santos”:

“It is shocking that the FBI is spending time and resources to physically send informants into our spaces to secretly record the work of totally nonviolent life-saving actions which are compliant with federal law,” PAAU founder and executive director Terrisa Bukovinac said. “This is a complete misuse and weaponization of the justice department and clearly demonstrates why the FACE Act must be fully and rapidly repealed.”

In the recording for which “Santos” is thought to be responsible, Handy spoke about a “nonviolent direct-action tactic called #PinkRoseRescue which was planned for January 21st.”

David Foster