Federal judge dismisses criminal complaint against former FBI officials over Hunter Biden testimony
A magistrate judge ruled that the government failed to show probable cause that two former FBI agents lied to Congress about the Hunter Biden investigation, leading to the dismissal of the criminal complaint.
A federal magistrate judge dismissed a criminal complaint on Monday that alleged two former FBI officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, lied to members of Congress about their knowledge of the investigation into former President Joe Biden’s son. Judge Zia Faruqui found the government had not demonstrated probable cause that the agents provided false statements during their 2023 testimony before the House Judiciary Committee.
The complaint claimed the agents misrepresented their roles on the Foreign Influence Task Force and in the FBI’s inquiry into the Hunter Biden laptop. The case was filed as a criminal complaint rather than being presented to a federal grand jury, a procedural detail noted by legal observers.
An FBI agent testified at a recent preliminary hearing that there were concerns the investigation could be perceived as political, and a prosecutor involved in the case acknowledged flaws in the complaint during a telephone conversation.
Attorney representatives for Benavides welcomed the ruling, describing the accusations as politically motivated. > "Bradley Benavides is a patriot. He is a public servant. And he is innocent. We are grateful that Judge Faruqui carefully weighed the evidence against the law and found the government could not meet the extremely low burden of probable cause."
The Justice Department could still seek a grand-jury review, but the judge’s finding that the complaint did not meet the legal standard makes further action unlikely. Pirro’s office did not immediately comment on the decision.