Overview
- Defense filings made public in mid‑August 2026 identify two named Homeland Security Investigations programs, Project Whipple Shield and Operation Puppet Master, and describe undercover agents attending meetings in churches, libraries, parks and union halls.
- The filings show agents collected license‑plate records, used Clearview AI facial‑recognition and infiltrated encrypted chats to build dossiers that included names, photos, addresses and employment details for many people who were not charged.
- HSI used administrative subpoenas to obtain multi‑year financial records from national and local unions and progressive groups, records the filings say were sought to trace alleged funding tied to the claimed conspiracy.
- Federal prosecutors have a 94‑page indictment charging 15 people in United States v. Sant and say terabytes of HSI material support the case, while defense teams are seeking broad electronic and communications records and arguing the probes violated First Amendment rights.
- Unions, churches and advocacy groups have condemned the surveillance as unconstitutional and retaliatory, and the disclosures have prompted public protests, press conferences and expanded court battles over what evidence the government must turn over.