Former FBI, CIA directors under investigation, DOJ indicates in statement

The Justice Department acknowledged Wednesday that it had opened criminal probes into former FBI director James B. Comey and former CIA director John Brennan — two frequent targets of President Donald Trump who played roles in the investigation into his 2016 campaign’s ties to Russia.

In a highly unusual statement, a department spokesperson referenced a “criminal investigation” into the two men but said the department does not comment on ongoing investigations. The statement came hours after Fox News, citing anonymous Justice Department sources, reported that both men were under scrutiny for their roles in the collusion probe, which Trump has repeatedly dismissed as the “Russian hoax.”

The Washington Post confirmed that CIA Director John Ratcliffe referred Brennan to the FBI last week to be criminally investigated for allegedly lying to Congress, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter. The scope and nature of the investigation into Comey is unclear.

It was also not clear how far along the investigations into the former officials had progressed or what, if any, charges might result.

A source close to Comey said the former director had not been contacted by investigators. Comey’s attorney declined to comment — as did spokespersons for the FBI and CIA. Brennan, meanwhile, did not respond to emailed requests for comment.

The unusual manner in which the department acknowledged the investigation into Comey and Brennan came as Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel have faced sustained backlash this week from conservative influencers over their handling of another investigation — that into the crimes of convicted sex offender and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and his 2019 jail cell suicide.

Though Bondi had vowed to release more Epstein investigatory documents and information, the department and the FBI issued a memo this week concluding what previous investigations had already found — that there was no evidence to suggest foul play in his death and that no further release of investigative material around his crimes would be “appropriate or warranted.”

Trump and his allies vowed on the campaign trail to exact retribution against many of his political enemies. Early in his second term, Trump issued executive orders punishing some of the lawyers and law firms whose work touched the Russia investigation.

Ratcliffe last week released an internal CIA review that was sharply critical of Brennan’s handling of a 2017 intelligence assessment that concluded Russian President Vladimir Putin had sought to help Trump beat Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The review criticized Brennan and other top leaders for rushing the inquiry but did not dispute that assessment’s central finding.

It said Brennan had pushed for the inclusion of details from the Steele Dossier, a collection of unverified claims about Trump gathered by a former British intelligence officer — which Trump and his allies have disputed. But testifying before Congress in 2023, Brennan said he did not believe the dossier should be included.

The internal CIA review did not mention Comey, and the exact nature of what false statements investigators suspect he may have made to Congress remains unclear.

In May, Trump administration officials said they were investigating Comey over a separate incident in which he posted a photo of seashells on a beach arranged to spell out “86 47” — an image they described as a threat on the president’s life. Trump is the 47th president; “86” is used colloquially to mean banning, removing or — in some cases — killing a person.

Comey has insisted he was not advocating violence but said in a social media post that he assumed the shells he saw “were a political message” of some sort.

During a meeting at the White House on Wednesday, Trump told the reporters he did not know anything about the investigations beyond what he read in the media.

“But I will tell you, I think they’re very dishonest people. I think they’re crooked as hell. And, maybe they have to pay a price for that,” Trump said. “I believe they are truly bad people and dishonest people … So whatever happens, happens.”

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Ellen Nakashima contributed to this report.