Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted on two of three counts Thursday by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Trump administration officials.
According to the DOJ, Comey faces one count of making an alleged false statement within jurisdiction of the legislative branch and one count of obstruction of a congressional investigation.
“Comey stated that he did not authorize someone at the FBI to be an anonymous source. According to the indictment that statement was false,” the DOJ states.
In a statement on X, Attorney General Pam Bondi said the indictment reflects the DOJ’s “commitment” to holding those who have “abused” power accountable.
“No one is above the law,” Bondi wrote. “Today’s indictment reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people. We will follow the facts in this case.”
Early reports released on Wednesday speculated that the DOJ would ask a grand jury to indict Comey on allegations of lying to Congress in September 2020 as a legal deadline for charges approaches. The speculations of Comey’s impending charges had come after reports broke in July that the former FBI director and former CIA Director John Brennan were placed under criminal investigation for potential wrongdoing regarding the infamous Steele dossier as they had testified about it to Congress.
In 2016, the Steele dossier paved the roadmap for the FBI’s investigation of alleged collusion between President Donald Trump’s first presidential campaign and Russia.
Comey in 2018 told Congress that the FBI had not verified the infamous dossier prior to the agency’s reliance on it to obtain a FISA warrant on President Donald Trump’s then-campaign adviser Carter Page. The former FBI director additionally claimed to lawmakers that Republicans had backed the dossier at the time, saying he believed it was important for investigators to understand the dossier was “a politically motivated effort, first by Republicans, then by Democrats.”
By 2020, Comey sat before the Senate Judiciary Committee, pleading ignorance to knowing that there had been significant problems with the dossier’s reliability. At the time, Comey said his staff at the FBI had not notified him of issues regarding Igor Danchenko, who was the primary source for the dossier’s author Christopher Steele.
Comey also told the lawmakers that he could not “recall” details from a briefing in October 2016 about the DOJ’s concerns over the dossier’s political bias against Trump.
In July, reports revealed that current FBI Director Kash Patel uncovered “burn bags” containing thousands of documents tied to discrediting the Russia case. According to Fox News, one of the alleged items recovered was a classified annex to special counsel John Durham’s final report, which was expected to contain evidence suggesting how the FBI played a role in advancing the Russia collusion narrative.
In addition to Bondi’s response on X, Patel wrote a statement calling out how “no one is above the law” and that the FBI has taken “another step” in its vow of “full accountability.”
“Today, your FBI took another step in its promise of full accountability. For far too long, previous corrupt leadership and their enablers weaponized federal law enforcement, damaging once proud institutions and severely eroding public trust. Every day, we continue the fight to earn that trust back, and under my leadership, this FBI will confront the problem head-on,” Patel wrote.
“Nowhere was this politicization of law enforcement more blatant than during the Russiagate hoax, a disgraceful chapter in history we continue to investigate and expose,” Patel added. “Everyone, especially those in positions of power, will be held to account – no matter their perch. No one is above the law.”
(Featured Image Media Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
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