Two former FBI intelligence officials who specialized in foreign election interference were charged Friday with lying to Congress. The officials, who surrendered on arrest warrants, each face one count of making false statements regarding their roles in investigating the origins of Hunter Biden's laptop in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.
The federal criminal case focuses on testimony about the defendants' roles in investigations into the former president's son. Republicans have long accused the FBI of mishandling the laptop and the investigations into the younger Biden. The officials have also come under criticism from allies of Donald Trump over their intelligence work during the 2020 election.
Attorneys for the accused officials have slammed the charges, with one lawyer calling them nonsense. Lawyers for the two officials claim the Department of Justice is seeking to revive the scandal just before the midterm election vote.