CIA special operations officer James Erdman III, a 20-year veteran of the agency, outlined the accusations during a Wednesday Senate hearing about the origins of Covid-19. 

'When the DIG [Director's Initiatives Group] ceased operations, the CIA also took back 40 boxes of JFK files and MKUltra files being processed for declassification by DNI Gabbard,' Erdman claimed. 

Republican lawmakers seized on Erdman's shocking accusations, with Anna Paulina Luna declaring: 'The CIA has 24 hours to return the documents to Tulsi Gabbard's office or else I will make a motion to issue a subpoena.'

Luna later clarified that the CIA did not 'raid' Gabbard's office, but did take documents 'ODNI has jurisdiction over.' 

The CIA and DNI have both denied Erdman's testimony, attacking the committee hearing as 'dishonest political theater masquerading as a congressional hearing.'

The Daily Mail has asked the DNI whether it ever shared any JFK or MKUltra documents with the CIA while Gabbard was allegedly seeking to declassify them.

MKUltra, the CIA's covert Cold War-era program, subjected unwitting Americans to drugs, hypnosis, and psychological torture in an effort to develop mind-control techniques. Most of the program's original records were destroyed in 1973 on the orders of then-CIA Director Richard Helms. 

'This is false - the CIA did not raid the DNI's office,' DNI spokeswoman Olivia Coleman said in a statement. 

Since most of the documents were destroyed a full investigation has been impossible. 

Luna said she plans to a hold on the MKUltra files on Wednesday, but rescheduled it to a later date.

The JFK assassination files and MKUltra records have remained among the most sought-after documents in American history.  

The latest allegations against the CIA come after Trump signed an executive order in January 2025 directing Gabbard and the DNI to oversee the full declassification of records related to the JFK, RFK, and MLK assassinations. 

While the bulk of the JFK files were released last year, Erdman's testimony suggests the CIA may have pulled back documents still being processed under that order.

Luna, along with House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, sent a letter to CIA Director John Ratcliffe ordering the agency to preserve all documents related to the JFK assassination and MKUltra.

The Florida lawmaker also stated that she called the CIA director to the accusations, noting that she does not have an 'issue' with Ratcliffe or Gabbard.