Former FBI officials charged with allegedly lying to Congress over Hunter Biden probe
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Two ex-FBI officials accused of providing false statements to Congress about their involvement in the Hunter Biden investigation have surrendered to authorities.
Two former FBI officials have been charged with a count of making false statements to Congress regarding their roles in the investigation of Hunter Biden, the son of President Donald Trump. The criminal complaint, filed in the District of Columbia, alleges that Nikki Floris, a former deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, and Bradley Benavides, who worked on election security and foreign-influence issues, misrepresented their participation in the Foreign Influence Task Force and the bureau’s Hunter Biden inquiries.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro announced on social media that Floris and Benavides surrendered on Friday morning and said the false statements pertained to their duties on the task force and the investigation.
"The DOJ has accused her falsely of a crime on the say-so of politicians, not on the facts," said attorneys Margaret Donovan, Chris Mattei, Mary Dohrmann and Kyle R. Freeny in a statement defending Floris, adding that the charges appear timed to influence the upcoming election.
Floris, who served as the FBI’s security lead for the 2020 presidential election, joined the bureau in 2005 as an intelligence analyst and later moved to the counterterrorism division. Benavides, a former colleague, focused on election security, foreign influence and Chinese intelligence threats. Neither official has been indicted by a grand jury, and the case proceeds on the basis of the criminal complaint.
The charges come amid ongoing criticism from allies of President Trump, who have repeatedly questioned the FBI’s handling of the 2020 election and related investigations.