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Judge strikes Justice Department's unsigned new complaint against two former FBI officials

Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui said he knew of no earlier such filing in that court, and the hearing on the original false-statement charges continued.

9 news outlets reported this
Liberal5 outletsCenter2 outletsConservative2 outlets
Published 3 min read
Overview

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui in Washington, D.C., struck a new criminal complaint the filed against two former officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides. They were charged the previous Friday with making false statements to about their knowledge of investigations involving Hunter Biden's laptop. The new document, posted to the public docket after midnight, added an obstruction charge.

It was unsigned and unsworn, and no judge had reviewed it for probable cause. Faruqui said he had never seen such a filing in that court. Prosecutor John Borchert said it was a first for him as well.

The judge said the department could still seek new charges through the normal process, and the hearing on the original complaint went ahead. Defense lawyer Mary Dohrmann said evidence is mounting that the case is a "political football." Floris' legal team called the new charge as meritless as the first.

Jeanine Pirro had announced the original charges. According to CBS News, ABC News and NBC News, FBI agent Bryan Witt testified that he worried the case would be seen as political.

Three sides of the story

Liberal5 outlets

Left-leaning outlets lead with the judge's rebuke, then give much space to the questions about politics behind the case. CBS News, ABC News and NBC News report testimony from FBI agent Bryan Witt, who said he feared the case would look political. ABC and NBC add that he called it a "huge distraction."

ABC says FBI Director Kash Patel ordered the probe after a July Trump speech on 2020 election interference. A CBS follow-up reports Witt acknowledged agents did not interview Floris or congressional staff with direct knowledge. It also says House Judiciary Committee Republican Counsel Steve Castor was not present for the testimony.

ABC places the case beside the Justice Department's separate effort to prosecute James Comey again, ahead of the . NBC includes Trump's remark "I heard they were bad people" and Pirro's comment that adding the charge was up to the judge. CBS notes that Justice Department norms discourage overt steps in political cases close to an election.

Defense statements are quoted at length.

Center2 outlets

UPI centers on the courtroom exchange, drawing on CBS News and CNBC for parts of its account. It reports that Judge Faruqui struck the unsigned, unsworn complaint. It quotes him calling such filings "inappropriate" and saying he was more concerned about the public docket than the late hour.

It also quotes his remark that the move made the government look afraid of a probable cause finding. UPI gives the ages of Floris, 46, and Benavides, 56, and says they surrendered Friday on one false-statement count each. It carries Pirro's statement on X about lying to Congress, including her words about "the hammer of justice."

It includes Borchert's reply that prosecutors are not afraid of such a finding. Defense views come from Dohrmann's "political football" line and a statement from Floris' team. The Hill reports that the judge criticized the Justice Department's handling of the case, including its attempt to add charges overnight, during a lengthy hearing.

Conservative2 outlets

Fox News opens with the judge's background. It notes that Faruqui earlier apologized to Cole Allen, who is accused of attempting to assassinate Trump at the 2026 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner. It says conservatives have criticized him over diversity programs, immigration enforcement and pretrial detention.

It also reports his Tuesday rebuke of the Justice Department, with long quotes. Fox highlights a wording change. The new complaint described the two as "involved in" the Hunter Biden work, softer than the original's "center" language.

Floris' lawyers argued this questions the factual basis of the case. Fox adds that critics have questioned the timing, days before the midterms, and the use of a complaint instead of a . It says the defense teams and the Justice Department did not answer its requests for comment.

The Washington Times reports that the lawyers describe the case as baseless and politically motivated.

All sources: 13 articles from 9 outlets

Liberal (8)

Center (2)

Conservative (3)

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