FBI Raids Home of Washington Post Reporter as Part of Pentagon Leak Investigation

Federal agents executed a rare search of a reporter’s home in Virginia, as part of an investigation into a Pentagon contractor accused of leaking classified intelligence. FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X, “This morning the @FBI and partners executed a search warrant of an individual at the Washington Post who was found to allegedly be obtaining and reporting classified, sensitive military information from a government contractor — endangering our warfighters and compromising America’s national security.”“The alleged leaker was arrested this week and is in custody. As this is an ongoing investigation, we will have no further comment,” Mr. Patel said. Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on X, “The Trump Administration will not tolerate illegal leaks of classified information that, when reported, pose a grave risk to our Nation’s national security and the brave men and women who are serving our country.”The Washington Post reported that FBI agents searched the home of Hannah Natanson. According to her bio on the Post’s website, she covers “Trump’s reshaping of the federal government and its effects.”Federal agents searched her home and seized her phone, a personal laptop, and a work-issued laptop. According to the Post, the agents told Ms. Natanson that she is not the focus of the probe, and she has not been accused of wrongdoing.The search was reportedly carried out as part of an investigation into a system administrator in Maryland, Aurelio Perez-Lugone, who is accused of taking classified intelligence reports home. Federal officers found the classified information stored in his lunch box and basement, according to the federal complaint. The rare search of a reporter’s home comes months after Ms. Bondi rescinded a Biden-era policy that restricted federal officials’ ability to subpoena reporters’ phone records and other materials to crack down on leakers.In April, Ms. Bondi said in a memo that was obtained by Axios, stating that leaking is “illegal and wrong, and it must stop.”“I have concluded that it is necessary to rescind Merrick Garland’s policies precluding the Department of Justice from seeking records and compelling testimony from members of the news media in order to identify and punish the source of improper leaks,” she added. The memo said that when there is a subpoena for a reporter’s materials, it “must include protocols designed to limit the scope of intrusion into potentially protected materials or newsgathering activities.”The search of Ms. Natanson’s home drew criticism from the executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute, Jameel Jaffer, who said in a statement, “Any search targeting a journalist warrants intense scrutiny because these kinds of searches can deter and impede reporting that is vital to our democracy.”“The Justice Department should explain publicly why it believes this search was necessary and legally permissible, and Congress and the courts should scrutinize that explanation carefully,” Mr. Jaffer said. “Searches of newsrooms and journalists are hallmarks of illiberal regimes, and we must ensure that these practices are not normalized here.”

FBI Raids Home of Washington Post Reporter as Part of Pentagon Leak Investigation

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