Former FBI Director James Comey said he is an innocent man who is “not afraid” of what is to come.
Comey was indicted Thursday for allegedly lying to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding, per Fox News.
“My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump, but we couldn’t imagine ourselves living any other way,” Comey said a video posted on social media. “We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either. Somebody that I love dearly recently said that fear is the tool of a tyrant, and she’s right.”
“But I’m not afraid,” Comey said.
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A grand jury indicted Comey after an investigation on whether he lied to Congress during his testimony on Sept. 30, 2020, regarding his handling of the original Trump–Russia investigation at the FBI — known as “Crossfire Hurricane.”
The indictment alleges Comey provided a false statement when he testified that he did not authorize someone at the FBI to be an anonymous source.
“My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system,” Comey added. “I’m innocent. So let’s have a trial and keep the faith.”
Comey will be represented by Patrick J. Fitzgerald.
“Jim Comey denies the charges filed today in their entirety,” Fitzgerald said in a statement. “We look forward to vindicating him in the courtroom.”
Fitzgerald had served as special counsel in the Valerie Plame CIA leak probe and prosecuted former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich when he served as U.S. attorney in Chicago.
Comey is expected to turn himself in on Friday. His arraignment is set for 10 a.m. Oct. 9 before District Judge Michael S. Nachmanoff, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden.
President Donald Trump reveled in the news of Comey’s indictment with a post on Truth Social and referred to Comey as a “dirty cop.”
“Whether you like Corrupt James Comey or not, and I can’t imagine too many people liking him, HE LIED! It is not a complex lie, it’s a very simple, but IMPORTANT one,” the president wrote. “There is no way he can explain his way out of it. He is a Dirty Cop, and always has been, but he was just assigned a Crooked Joe Biden appointed Judge, so he’s off to a very good start.”
“Nevertheless, words are words, and he wasn’t hedging or in dispute. He was very positive, there was no doubt in his mind about what he said, or meant by saying it,” Trump continued. “He left himself ZERO margin of error on a big and important answer to a question. He just got unexpectedly caught.”
“James “Dirty Cop” Comey was a destroyer of lives. He knew exactly what he was saying, and that it was a very serious and far reaching lie for which a very big price must be paid!” Trump concluded.
FBI Director Kash Patel praising the agents and analysts who spearheaded the investigation.
“They called the balls and strikes and will continue to do so,” Patel said in a statement posted on X. “The wildly false accusations attacking this FBI for the politicization of law enforcement comes from the same bankrupt media that sold the world on Russia Gate- it’s hypocrisy on steroids.”
“Their baseless objections tell us now, more than ever, that we are precisely over the target and will remain on mission until completion,” Patel added.
According to the indictment, Comey allegedly obstructed a congressional investigation into the disclosure of sensitive information.
Federal law stated prosecutors have five years to bring a charge. That five-year mark occurrs Tuesday.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia is handling the case.
