A Border Patrol agent is under investigation after he obtained private travel records of a journalist covering national security and used them to question her about her sources, according to a report.
The Department of Homeland Security inspector general and Border Patrol investigators are looking into whether agent Jeffrey Rambo improperly or illegally used government computer systems to find details of a trip to Spain reporter Ali Watkins had taken with her then-boyfriend, James Wolfe, security director of the Senate Intelligence Committee, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Investigators are also trying to determine whether anyone else was involved in accessing the records.
Rambo contacted Watkins, who then worked for Politico and now works for the New York Times, on June 1, 2017, asking to meet with her immediately. He disclosed that he worked for the government, but would not give his name or the agency he worked for.
According to the Times, Watkins told friends and editors that Rambo hinted he could reveal her relationship to the Washington Post and tried to pressure her into becoming an informant and divulging information on other journalists and their sources to him. Watkins declined and later returned to the bar where they met to get his name off of a credit card receipt.
Last month, Wolfe was arrested and accused of lying to the FBI about his contacts with reporters. He has pleaded not guilty. Watkins has maintained that she never used Wolfe as a source while they dated, yet the Trump administration secretly seized her email and phone records as part of the investigation.
Law enforcement officials told the Times they are not aware of any evidence that Rambo was officially assigned to investigate government leaks. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security have declined to comment, citing the internal investigation.
