Comey Indicted on False-Statement, Obstruction Charges

A federal grand jury in Virginia returned a two‑count indictment charging former FBI Director James Comey with making a false statement and obstruction related to his September 2020 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The indictment was brought by U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan in the Eastern District of Virginia; Comey has denied the charges in an Instagram video and through counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, saying he is innocent, that his “heart is broken for the Department of Justice,” and invoking the personal costs to his family. The arraignment is scheduled for October 9 in Alexandria, Virginia, and Comey faces up to five years in prison if convicted. The filing came days after President Trump appeared to urge his attorney general to prosecute perceived political enemies, and Trump and allied officials hailed the indictment, prompting concerns about politicization of the Justice Department. Reporters have noted Comey’s references to family developments in his public remarks, and commentators describe the case as an unprecedented prosecution tied to the long‑concluded Russia investigation, making Comey the first former senior government official charged in that context and the first former FBI director to be indicted.