Two Ex-FBI Officials Face Charges of Lying to Congress Over Hunter Biden Probe

Two former senior FBI officials have been charged with lying to Congress about their roles in the bureau’s investigation into Hunter Biden, according to federal authorities.Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, both former leaders of the FBI’s now-dissolved Foreign Influence Task Force, surrendered to authorities on Friday. Each faces up to five years in prison if convicted.FBI Director Kash Patel announced the charges on social media, writing that Ms. Floris led the FITF as deputy assistant director from mid-2019 through mid-2022, while Mr. Benavides served as the unit’s section chief from mid-2019 through the 2020 election. “Both testified that the FITF was not involved in the Hunter Biden investigations,” Mr. Patel wrote. “Documentary evidence, contemporaneous communications, and witness accounts contradict their testimony.”Mr. Patel added that Ms. Floris had privately claimed to be “running a shadow government” during the 2020 election in her FITF role, and said, “Lying to Congress by senior FBI officials strikes at the heart of our system. No one is above the law.”U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, who also announced the charges, said in a statement, “Floris and Benavides allegedly lied to Congress about their roles in the FBI’s Hunter Biden investigations, with one claiming they only learned about it from Wikipedia – despite evidence showing their involvement in helping shape the public narrative about Hunter Biden’s laptop right before the election.”“Lying to Congress by anyone strikes at the heart of our democratic system,” Ms. Pirro continued, “but when senior FBI agents lie to Congress believing they are above the law, it’s time to bring the hammer of justice down on them.”The charges stem from testimony Ms. Floris and Mr. Benavides gave to the House Judiciary Committee in July 2023 as part of a broader inquiry into alleged corruption involving President Joe Biden’s family. When asked whether she had “any involvement in the Hunter Biden investigation,” Ms. Floris testified, “I did not,” adding that she had “no knowledge of said laptop.” Mr. Benavides, when asked when he learned of the criminal investigation tied to the laptop, told investigators he first heard about it from “the Wikipedia page.”Internal FBI records cited by prosecutors tell a different story. Emails show both officials discussing Hunter Biden’s laptop frequently in the weeks surrounding the 2020 election, including one exchange in which Benavides floated the now-debunked theory that the laptop was a “Russian disinformation effort.” Ms. Floris replied, “Looks good!” Both were reportedly part of an informal group, known as “Round River,” that compiled derogatory information about Hunter Biden.Attorneys for both defendants have denied wrongdoing. Ms. Floris’s legal team called her “a patriot” who “served our nation as a dedicated FBI intelligence officer for nearly 20 years,” arguing the charges were politically motivated. Mr. Benavides’s attorney, Ronald Safer, said his client “worked tirelessly to protect the public” and called the case “a transparently political complaint.”Neither defendant has yet been indicted by a federal grand jury at Washington, D.C. Asked about the case Friday, President Trump called the pair “dirty cops, like Comey,” a reference to the former FBI director, James Comey.

Two Ex-FBI Officials Face Charges of Lying to Congress Over Hunter Biden Probe

Two Ex-FBI Officials Face Charges of Lying to Congress Over Hunter Biden Probe

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