Jan. 6 Capitol attack investigation nowhere near as lengthy as the one for 9/11

Federal authorities have charged nearly 900 people with crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. But one popular Facebook post suggests the breadth of that ongoing federal investigation is disproportionate — especially when compared to another dark day in modern American history.

"You spent more time investigating 1/6 than 9/11," read the words in the Aug. 24 post, a version of a meme that stars SpongeBob SquarePants in a black "FBI" baseball cap.

The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

(Screenshot from Facebook.)

Has the FBI already spent more time investigating the Jan. 6 attack than it spent investigating 9/11?

No. Although the events of Jan. 6  resulted in an investigation that has lasted 19 months so far, there’s no comparison. Records show that the FBI investigated 9/11 for at least about 15 years, and experts say it is likely the FBI is still investigating.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said on the Capitol attack’s anniversary that, "every day since, we have worked to identify, investigate, and apprehend defendants from across the country."

More than 3,100 people were killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to the Justice Department. Terrorists hijacked four planes that day. They flew two into the World Trade Center towers in New York City and one into the Pentagon building in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania before it could reach the terrorists’ target in Washington D.C.

As seen from the New Jersey Turnpike near Kearny, N.J., smoke billows from the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York after airplanes crashed into both towers on Sept.11, 2001. (AP)

Within three days, more than 7,000 FBI special agents and support personnel were assigned to work on the investigation. Six days after the attacks, then-FBI Director Robert Mueller said that more than 500 people were working 24 hours a day at FBI Headquarters. 

The FBI "immediately initiated a massive investigation, called ‘PENTTBOM,’" into the attack, the Justice Department reported in 2003. That investigation "focused on identifying the terrorists who hijacked the airplanes and anyone who aided their efforts." 

One extensive, public report on 9/11 was released on July 22, 2004 — about two years and 10 months after the attack. It was compiled by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also known as the 9/11 Commission) and relied on information uncovered during the FBI investigation.

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In June 2004, Mueller said the 9/11 investigation would continue as long as there were leads to pursue. 

Since then, at least one small investigation named "Operation Encore" examined the Saudi Arabian connections involved in the 9/11 attack.

Although parts of the investigations remain classified for national security reasons, President Joe Biden ordered that the Justice Department review and potentially declassify some 9/11 investigation documents in 2021. 

The documents later released show that the FBI was still investigating 9/11 as recently as April 2016 — more than 14 and a half years after the attack. 

"If you really want to count time, the 9/11 investigative effort still continues today after 20 years," said Amy Zegart, a security and intelligence expert and Stanford University political science professor. "The FBI’s role now is likely to be small, but I highly doubt it’s zero, since the FBI is often involved in investigating terrorist attacks, including those abroad."

A meme shared on Facebook claimed that the FBI "spent more time investigating" the Jan. 6 Capitol attack than 9/11.

The FBI’s Jan. 6 investigation began the day of the attack and remains ongoing nearly two years later. The bureau’s 9/11 investigation began Sept. 11, 2001. The attacks were still under investigation nearly 15 years later and, to some extent, still are. 

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