Former top FBI lawyer James Baker under criminal investigation for media leaks
by Kelly Cohen
| January 15, 2019 03:06 PM
Former FBI general counsel James Baker is under criminal investigation for unauthorized leaks to the media.
The development was made public in a letter sent Tuesday to the office of U.S. Attorney John Durham for the District of Connecticut by Republican Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Mark Meadows of North Carolina.
In the letter, the two lawmakers cite the transcript of a congressional interview with Baker and his lawyer in October. “You may or may not know, [Baker has] been the subject of a leak investigation … a criminal leak investigation that’s still active at the Justice Department,†lawyer Daniel Levin told lawmakers, according to the transcript cited by Jordan and Meadows.
Levin then declined to answer any more questions about conversations Baker had with reporters. "As we continue our oversight and investigative work, we felt it prudent to write to you seeking an update. Without being apprised of the contours of your leak investigation and Baker’s role, we run the risk of inadvertently interfering with your prosecutorial plans," Jordan and Meadows wrote.
Baker was appointed FBI general counsel in January 2014 and reassigned by newly appointed director Christopher Wray in December 2017. Jordan and Meadows were part of a House GOP effort investigating how the Justice Department and FBI acted ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
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