Ex-FBI Director James Comey Indicted by US Grand Jury on 2 Counts of Lying to Congress
A federal grand jury in the US state of Virginia has formally charged former FBI Director James Comey with two offences related to testimony he gave to Congress.
Mr Comey, who has long drawn US President Donald Trump’s criticism, is accused of lying to a Senate committee in 2020 about whether he authorised a leak of classified information to the media.
Responding to the indictment, Mr Comey declared himself innocent and said he had “great confidence in the federal judicial system”.
The indictment comes days after Trump called on the country’s top law enforcement official to more aggressively investigate his political adversaries, including Mr Comey.
An indictment in the US justice system is a formal accusation issued by a grand jury after they review evidence to determine if a case should proceed.
Comey To Appear In Court
Mr Comey may have his first court appearance on Friday but his arraignment – where charges are formally read out in front of a defendant in court – has been set for 9 October in Alexandria, Virginia, the BBC’s US partner CBS reports.
The probe is being led by Lindsey Halligan, the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, who was previously Trump’s personal lawyer and took over her new role on Monday.
Attorney General Pam Bondi, urged by Trump at the weekend to pursue Comey, said in a statement that the indictment “reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people”.
The two-page indictment is short on detail but it says Mr Comey has been charged with one count of making false statements and another of obstruction of justice.
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Both counts relate to Mr Comey’s appearance at a Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2020, when he was questioned about the FBI’s handling of two explosive investigations – one on pro-Trump election interference by Russia and another on Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.
The five-year statute of limitations for charges based on that hearing would have expired next week.
The first count relates to Mr Comey telling the committee he had not authorised someone else at the FBI to be an anonymous source in news reports about an FBI investigation into what the indictment describes as “PERSON 1”, believed to be Hillary Clinton.
The second count alleges that Mr Comey “did corruptly endeavor to influence, obstruct and impede” the committee by making false statements to it.
The jury rejected a third count of making false statements.
If found guilty, Mr Comey could face up to five years in prison.
He said in a video statement: “My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump.”
“We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either,” he continued, adding: “And, I am innocent. So, let’s have a trial.”
BBC
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