A federal grand jury in Virginia has indicted former FBI Director James Comey on two counts – for making false statements to Congress and for attempting to obstruct its work. This is stated in the BBC material, writes UNN.
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Comey, who headed the Bureau from 2013 to 2017 and was repeatedly criticized by Donald Trump, became the first former FBI chief to be prosecuted.
The indictment came days after Trump called on the nation's top law enforcement official, Attorney General Pam Bondi, to more aggressively investigate his political opponents, including Mr. Comey.
According to the investigation, during Senate hearings in September 2020, Comey denied that he had authorized the transfer of information to the media about conversations with Trump during the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 elections. The indictment alleges that he deliberately misled lawmakers by allowing an FBI employee to be an anonymous source in publications. The second count concerns "corrupt attempts to influence and obstruct" the Senate investigation.
FBI launched criminal investigations into ex-CIA and FBI directors09.07.25, 04:38 • [views_45495]
Comey himself pleaded not guilty and stated that he trusted the federal judicial system. His lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, confirmed that the defense is preparing to prove the absence of malicious intent. If found guilty, the former FBI director could face up to five years in prison.
At the 2020 congressional hearings, Mr. Comey reaffirmed his 2017 testimony that he did not disclose or approve the disclosure of information about the FBI's investigation into Trump or his 2016 presidential rival, Hillary Clinton.
The case is being handled by new federal prosecutor Lindsey Galligan, who previously worked as Donald Trump's lawyer. The charges were brought shortly after Trump himself publicly called on the Department of Justice to more actively prosecute his critics, including Comey. This sparked a wave of discussions about political interference in the agency's activities.
The official indictment is scheduled for October 9 in Alexandria, Virginia. Democrats have already criticized the case, calling it an "attack on the rule of law," while Trump welcomed the indictment on social media and stated that Comey "will finally be punished."
This is not the only proceeding related to the name of the former FBI director this year. Earlier, the US Secret Service opened an investigation after his social media post, which featured an image of seashells with the numbers "8647". The post was quickly deleted, but Republicans interpreted it as a possible call for violence against President Donald Trump.
In this numerical combination, "86" in American slang means "to eliminate" or "to get rid of," and in some modern interpretations – even "to kill." The number "47" symbolically refers to Trump's ordinal number as US president.