As the five-year deadline approaches, the Justice Department appears ready to pursue a perjury indictment against former FBI Director James Comey for his congressional testimony, Fox News reported.
The case revolves around whether Comey misled lawmakers in September 2020 about his management of the FBI's probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, with a grand jury in Virginia now reviewing the matter for potential charges.
Back in 2016, the FBI opened an investigation into possible Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election, an effort that drew sharp scrutiny for its handling under Comey's leadership.
That probe, known internally as Crossfire Hurricane, examined alleged ties between Donald Trump's campaign and Russia, setting off years of political tension.
Trump, who won the election, repeatedly denounced the inquiry as a "Russia hoax" and a "rigged witch hunt" that harmed America's relations with Russia.
From his perspective, figures like Comey and former CIA Director John Brennan had politicized intelligence agencies to target his presidency, a claim that resonated with many skeptical of bureaucratic overreach.
In May 2017, Trump fired Comey, later stating he had done the country "a great service" by removing him from the FBI helm.
Trump's critics saw the dismissal as obstruction, but supporters viewed it as a necessary step to restore trust in law enforcement institutions long plagued by perceived biases.
The investigation then shifted to special counsel Robert Mueller, who after extensive review found no sufficient evidence of criminal conspiracy between Trump's campaign and Russia.
During Trump's first term, the Justice Department tapped special counsel John Durham to examine potential FBI mishandling in the Crossfire Hurricane operation.
Durham's findings led to charges against three lower-level FBI officials and highlighted serious bureau errors, though he concluded no illegal actions by top leaders like Comey.
Yet, those revelations fueled ongoing debates about accountability, reminding us that even well-intentioned probes can veer into problematic territory without proper oversight.
Fast forward to Sept. 30, 2020, when Comey testified before Congress about his role in the 2016 Russia investigation, statements now at the heart of the perjury allegations.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia is overseeing the current case, with the statute of limitations expiring next Tuesday under federal law's five-year window.
DOJ officials are nearing a decision on prosecution, as a source noted, with uncertainty lingering over which specific parts of Comey's testimony might trigger charges.
Trump has lambasted Comey for years, accusing him of dishonesty in handling the probe and related issues.
"I think they're very dishonest people. I think they're crooked as hell," Trump said in July about Comey and Brennan. "And maybe they have to pay a price for that."
Such pointed remarks, while blunt, underscore a broader conservative frustration with what many see as selective enforcement in Washington, where accountability often seems reserved for the politically inconvenient.
