History Main / MistakenlyAttackedMole

* ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'': In "[[{{Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS17E19ShelteredOutcasts}} Sheltered Outcasts]]" Carisi goes undercover in a shelter for sex offenders to catch a serial rapist. He is attacked by [[VigilanteInjustice a group of vigilantes]] led by the father of one of the rapist's victims.

->'''Optimus Prime''': Any last words?
->'''Decepticon!Mike''': I was...working...undercover!
-->-- ''Podcast/RiffTrax'', ''Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen''

* In the climax of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', Professor [=McGonagall=] and the rest of the teachers are done putting up with Snape and join forces to drive him out of the castle. It's shortly after he dies does Harry learn he had long been Dumbledore's inside man, with even [[spoiler:Snape's murder of Dumbledore]] having been arranged between the two, and that he had actually used his position as Hogwarts' headmaster to protect everyone from the Death Eaters. As such, by driving him out, there is no one to shield them from Voldemort, who decides to launch an all-out war against the castle.

* Nearly happens retrospectively to Felix Gaeta in ''Series/BattlestarGalactica2003'', when a semi-tolerated vigilante group who have been executing Cylon collaborators following the humans' escape from New Caprica nearly kill him because of his role as chief assistant to President Baltar under the occupation. In fact, he was an anonymous mole for the resistance, not even his contacts knew who he was but the information he passed on saved tons of lives (including the soon-to-be restored President Roslin). Until he's rescued, Gaeta makes no attempt to defend himself, seemingly because he hates himself for the horrors that he [[DirtyBusiness had to be complicit in to maintain his cover]].

* ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'': In "[[{{Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS17E19ShelteredOutcasts}} Sheltered Outcasts]]" Carisi goes undercover in a shelter for sex offenders to catch a serial rapist. He is attacked by a group of vigilantes led by the father of one of the rapist's victims.

* At one point in ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'', you're informed that there's an Antegrian spy impersonating an Arstotzkan official who is trying to nab the information about the Arstotzkan spies in Antegria you're supposed to hand over to your authorities. You're given two identical documents and told not to mix them up. If you give the Antegrian spy the fake documents, Antegria accidentally kills their own spies. If you give them the ''real'' papers, Antegria kills the ''actual'' Arstotzkan spies.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 Team Fortress 2]]: During the ''Meet the Spy'' short, the BLU Spy has spent much of the short describing the RED Spy that has infiltrated their base, only to take a shotgun blast to the face by the BLU Soldier. It turns out that the BLU Scout was the RED Spy all along.
[[/folder]]

* [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2]]: During the ''Meet the Spy'' short, the BLU Spy has spent much of the short describing the RED Spy that has infiltrated their base, only to take a shotgun blast to the face by the BLU Soldier. It turns out that the BLU Scout was the RED Spy all along.

A subtrope of NiceJobBreakingItHero and RightHandVersusLeftHand. Similar to AcquittedTooLate where an innocent person dies in prison before their exoneration. Compare and contrast FlockOfWolves and FriendOrFoe where one didn't know that the mole was on their side in the first place. Can go hand in hand with VigilanteExecution, especially if the executioner [[TheFriendNobodyLikes isn't popular with the rest of your side]]. If the mole went undercover [[FakingTheDead by orchestrating his own death]], see MistakenForOwnMurderer. See also TragicMistake and ATragedyOfImpulsiveness.

Sometimes, the worst thing about being TheMole is not the life-threatening lifestyle, the risk of getting caught by the enemy, being outed as a spy, and being executed before you can complete your mission. No, sometimes, the worst part is the chance of coming under fire from your own allies. That one [[CowboyCop loose cannon]] who wasn't informed of your mission, believes you've turned traitor, feels [[MurderIsTheBestSolution there's only one way]] to deal with [[TreacheryIsASpecialKindOfEvil scum like you]], and in an impulsive act of what [[WithUsOrAgainstUs they think is patriotism]], shoots you on the spot.

Sometimes, the worst thing about being TheMole is not the life-threatening lifestyle, the risk of getting caught by the enemy, being outed as a spy and being executed before you can complete your mission. No, sometimes, the worst part is the chance of coming under fire from your own allies. That one [[CowboyCop loose cannon]] who wasn't informed of your mission, believes you've turned traitor, feels [[MurderIsTheBestSolution there's only one way]] to deal with [[TreacheryIsASpecialKindOfEvil scum like you]], and in an impulsive act of what [[WithUsOrAgainstUs they think is patriotism]], shoots you on the spot.

In other words, the ultimate case of PoorCommunicationKills, and one of the reasons why being LockedOutOfTheLoop is a bad thing.

If there is DramaticIrony involved and the audience knows that the victim is a mole, it can make the misguided patriot look unreasonable and monstrous. To make the situation worse, the mole might try to explain the situation, [[CassandraTruth only for the attacker to refuse to listen/believe him until it is too late]]. If the rest of the mole's allies arrive in time to save him, that leads into HesAFriend. The attacker is likely to get YouFool and WhatTheHellHero for his actions, or inversely the attacker will dish it out [[NeverMyFault to the people that didn't tell him the guy was a mole]]. Even worse still if the mole does their mole thing by their own without telling any of their allies, causing all of them to believe that you've turned traitor and thus will hardly trust your words -- but sometimes [[ZeroApprovalGambit this is intentional on their part]], and they may even expect to get attacked by their own (real) allies.

* ''ComicBook/MightyMorphinPowerRangersBoomStudios'': In ''Power Rangers: Soul of the Dragon'' Tommy hunts for his missing son, JJ, and ends up him having joined an alien gang, and end up coming to blows. It's only later that Tommy learns that JJ was infiltrating the gang on the behalf of his superiors of SPD. Not that it matters, as JJ ends up the target of the gang's leader, the long-missing Scorpina, as JJ is chosen to be the sacrifice to bring Lokar to Earth.

* ''Film/{{The Assignment|1997}}'' (1997). The plot involves a {{doppelganger}} of terrorist Carlos the Jackal who is trained by the CIA/Mossad to impersonate him, so he can make contact with a former lover of Carlos. However she turns out to be an informant for French intelligence; they ambush the man they think is Carlos and he has to kill several agents in the process of escaping.

* Nearly happens retrospectively to Felix Gaeta in ''Series/BattlestarGalactica2003'', when a semi-tolerated vigilante group who have been executing Cylon collaborators following the humans' escape from New Caprica nearly kill him because of his role as chief assistant to President Baltar under the occupation. In fact he was an anonymous mole for the resistance, not even his contacts knew who he was but the information he passed on saved tons of lives (including the soon-to-be restored President Roslin). Until he's rescued, Gaeta makes no attempt to defend himself, seemingly because he hates himself for the horrors that he [[DirtyBusiness had to be complicit in to maintain his cover]].
* In one episode of ''Series/HogansHeroes'', Carter pretends to turn traitor in order to learn the location of a chemical plant. In a unique variation, a member on the enemy side that wanted to defect tried to poison Carter because she thought his act was real.

Sometimes, the worst thing about being TheMole is not the life-threatening lifestyle, the risk of getting caught by the enemy, being outed as a spy and being executed before you can complete your mission. No, sometimes, the worst part is the chance of coming under-fire by your own allies. That one [[CowboyCop loose cannon]] who wasn't informed of your mission, believes you've turned traitor, feels [[MurderIsTheBestSolution there's only one way]] to deal with [[TreacheryIsASpecialKindOfEvil scum like you]], and in an impulsive act of what [[WithUsOrAgainstUs they think is patriotism]], shoots you on the spot.