Kash Patel stated that applicants who engaged in bestiality were victims of bestiality because they were forced to do so.
Posted by The MeidasTouch Podcast, Checked
- Sources
- 2 contradict5 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 60%
The MeidasTouch PodcastSep 15, 2026
Patel did defend the policy as protecting trafficking victims forced into bestiality, and The Nation quotes a garbled version of him saying applicants who engaged in bestiality 'were victims... because they...'.
Our two reads of who says this, and how, disagree, so it counts as the post's own claim.
What was said
… Down "No, you did. You actually did, because you lied. I can just say i what I'm reading to you: dropped automatic disqualification for applicants who have been engaged in bestiality. Not victims of bestiality, applicants who have engaged applicants who've engaged in bestiality means they were victims of bestiality, because they were forced to do so. And at this FBI, we are not going to criminalize and prevent victims from serving the United States of America and the premier law enforcement agency in the world. They did that before. …
The MeidasTouch Podcast · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. NBC reports Patel said that if an applicant 'voluntarily did it, sure' they should be disqualified, and only 'if he was trafficked into it' would the policy differ, so he did not say all applicants who engaged were forced victims.[3]
Contradicts. The Independent reports FBI officials stressed that people who committed sex crimes would still be ineligible, which conflicts with the claim that engaged applicants are simply victims.[4]
Supports. Multiple outlets (AP, Reuters, CBS, CNN) report Patel said the change was meant to avoid punishing victims of bestiality who were trafficked or forced into it.[1][2][5][6]
Supports. The Nation quotes Patel's explanation as 'Applicants who have engaged in bestaility means they were victims of bestiality because they...', closely matching the claim's wording.[7]
Context. The claim's wording matches a garbled transcript in the post; the post itself is not evidence and the claim is graded on what the sources report Patel saying.
Sources
7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 4 tier 2, 1 not rated
- 1FBI Director Kash Patel at Senate hearing | AP Newsapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2FBI's Patel defends change in 'bestiality' hiring practice as lawmakers seek answersreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 3Kash Patel defends FBI’s new policy on bestiality at Senate hearingnbcnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: contradicts
- 4Bestiality takes over Kash Patel's testimony as Senators zero in on new rules for applicantsthe-independent.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 5FBI Director Kash Patel pushed on lower hiring standards at FBI, Olympic celebration and Trump-ordered investigationscbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 6Kash Patel defends removing bestiality as automatic disqualifier for FBI applicants | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 7Kash Patel Stands Up For “Victims” Of Bestiality - The Nationthenation.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Kash Patel changed FBI hiring regulations to remove the automatic disqualification for applicants who engaged in bestiality.True
- The FBI under Director Kash Patel does not allow individuals who have engaged in bestiality to be employed as FBI agents.Mixed
- Senator Dick Durbin asked Kash Patel about the FBI's hiring criteria regarding individuals who have engaged in bestiality.True
- The FBI Director stated that the FBI is focused on helping victims of bestiality become FBI agents.True
- Kash Patel serves as FBI Director.True