“Only the FBI has the peculiar status of being a government agency that if you lie or mislead, it is a crime.”
I think lying to Congress has similar penalties. Unfortunately they’re never imposed.
Lying in ANY federal investigation carries a criminal penalty no matter whether it is Congressional, FBI, Postal, court martial or Etc. The fine last I heard could be up to 10 years and/or $10 thousand. The penalties rarely make headlines.
BTW Martha Stewart got off lightly compared to the penalty they could have exacted. Someone took mercy on her. Not the investigators, however.