According to reports, US Special Counsel John Durham is pursuing criminal charges against several low-level FBI officials and individuals who provided false tips during the 2016 investigation into Russian ties to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.
An unidentified person familiar with the investigation told the Wall Street Journal on Friday that Durham has presented evidence before a grand jury that could lead to indictments in the case.
An unidentified source told the Associated Press that the report was accurate.
Some of the evidence being examined is said to concern false tips about alleged connections between the Trump campaign and Russia’s Alfa Bank.
By the way, It is illegal to knowingly provide false information to the FBI.
Durham was assigned by former Attorney General William Barr in May 2019 to investigate the origins of “Crossfire Hurricane,” the FBI investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian operatives.
Barr announced Durham’s appointment as special counsel in December 2020 in order to ensure that the investigation could continue after Democrat Joe Biden took office as president the following month.
Durham’s long-awaited report is expected to be completed within the next few months, but it could be delayed, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Many Trump supporters expected the report to be completed before the November election, boosting the Republican incumbent’s chances of defeating Biden, but those expectations were dashed when Barr ruled out a pre-election release in October.
It wasn’t clear from Friday’s media reports if the indictments would be limited to the low-level FBI employees and informants who were the focus of the grand jury.
Der US-Rep. Devin Nunes (R-California), an ally of Donald Trump, acknowledged last month that Durham’s report “may not be as broad as we would like it to be”.
To which he added, “I’m still convinced, and it’s probably my duty to be, that people will go to jail and be prosecuted for the Russia fiasco and Russia hoax.”
Congress and the DOJ’s internal watchdog found violations in how the FBI officials obtained warrants to spy on Trump campaign aide Carter Page in previous investigations.
Clinesmith pleaded guilty to altering an email used to apply for one of the Page warrants as a result of Durham’s investigation.
A 12-month probation period and 400 hours of community service were imposed on him in January of this year.
It took two years for special counsel Robert Mueller and a team of lawyers to conclude that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.
