Judge dismisses case against former FBI officials who DOJ believes hampered Biden family corruption probe法官驳回了针对前联邦调查局官员的指控，司法部认为这些官员妨碍了对拜登家族腐败的调查。
A federal judge has thrown out a case against two former FBI officials who were charged with lying to Congress as part of a probe that focused on whether FBI investigators sought to minimize allegations of Biden family corruption and evidence related to Hunter Biden’s laptop.
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A federal judge has thrown out a case against two former FBI officials who were charged with lying to Congress as part of a probe that focused on whether FBI investigators sought to minimize allegations of Biden family corruption and evidence related to Hunter Biden’s laptop.
“I am deeply troubled by what has happened in this case,” Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui said during a Monday hearing announcing his dismissal of the case, adding the case was built on assumptions and filed at the direction of President Donald Trump.
The case, he added, could not be seen “as anything other than weaponization,” adding that it has been “marketing material for people not to join the FBI.”
Nathan Howard/Reuters
First on CNN: DOJ brings criminal charges against FBI officials it believes hampered Biden corruption investigation
Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, both former top Washington-based intelligence specialists, were charged with one count of making a false statement. After the initial charges, prosecutors had added an additional obstruction charge that hadn’t been signed by a judge or law enforcement officer.
The charges, which came less than two weeks before Election Day, were related to statements Floris and Benavides made to the House Judiciary Committee in 2023 as Republicans questioned an FBI election interference task force’s involvement in the Hunter Biden investigations.
Faruqui oversaw days of arguments over the charges before dismissing the case on Monday, finding it lacked probable cause.
This story is developing and will be updated.
Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
一名联邦法官驳回了针对两名前联邦调查局官员的案件，他们被控在调查中向国会撒谎，该调查的重点是联邦调查局调查人员是否试图淡化有关拜登家族腐败的指控以及与亨特·拜登笔记本电脑有关的证据。
“我对这起案件的进展深感不安，”地方法官齐亚·法鲁基在周一的听证会上宣布驳回此案时说道，并补充说，此案是建立在假设之上的，并且是在唐纳德·特朗普总统的指示下提起的。
他补充说，这起案件只能被视为“武器化”，并补充说，它已经成为“劝阻人们加入联邦调查局的宣传材料”。
内森·霍华德/路透社
CNN独家报道：司法部对涉嫌妨碍拜登腐败调查的联邦调查局官员提起刑事诉讼
尼基·弗洛里斯和布拉德利·贝纳维德斯均为前华盛顿高级情报专家，他们被控一项作伪证罪。在最初的指控之后，检方又增加了一项妨碍司法公正的指控，但该指控未经法官或执法人员签署。
这些指控是在选举日不到两周前提出的，与弗洛里斯和贝纳维德斯在 2023 年向众议院司法委员会发表的声明有关，当时共和党人质疑联邦调查局选举干预工作组参与亨特·拜登调查的情况。
法鲁基法官主持了数天的辩论，最终于周一驳回了此案，认为该案缺乏合理理由。
此事件仍在发展中，我们将持续更新报道。