FBI lawyer under criminal investigation for altering document related to Carter Page surveillance
An FBI lawyer is under criminal investigation for allegedly altering a document related to the surveillance of onetime Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. The lower-level line attorney, who is no longer with the bureau, is being scrutinized by U.S. Attorney John Durham as part of his criminal investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation, according to CNN.
Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz uncovered the document as part of his investigation into alleged Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act abuses, which concluded in September, and has been in contact with Durham. The Connecticut-based prosecutor's administrative review, overseen by Attorney General William Barr, turned into a criminal investigation this fall, giving Durham the power to impanel a grand jury and hand down indictments. No charges relevant to the situation appear to have been filed in court. A Justice Department representative did not immediately return a request for comment. Horowitz's team interviewed the FBI official, who admitted to making a change to the document. Unclear is how much sway the document had in the FBI's effort to obtain warrants approved by the FISA Court to electronically surveil Page, but the change to the document was substantive enough to twist its meaning. "If there was an FBI agent sworn to uphold the Constitution who can be proven to have altered the document in connection with a legal proceeding, including the obtaining of a FISA warrant, that's really serious. It doesn't get a lot more serious than that," former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said Thursday evening on CNN.
Horowitz confirmed Thursday that he expects his FISA report to be released to the public on Dec 9. He has also predicted minimal redactions after a classification review and final session for witnesses to provide feedback. Republicans believe Horowitz's report will reveal an effort to undermine President Trump's 2016 campaign in which the FBI misled the FISA Court in its reliance on an unverified dossier compiled by British ex-spy Christopher Steele, whose research about Trump and his associates was partially funded by Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign and the Democratic National Committee through the Perkins Coie law firm. Some have even predicted indictments and prison time for officials who signed off on the warrants.
