A federal magistrate judge dismissed the cases against two former FBI officials accused of lying to Congress about the investigation into Hunter Biden’s laptop. He said the prosecution appeared to be an example of the government being used as a political weapon.
The Justice Department had brought charges against Nikki Floris, 46, and Bradley Benavides, 56. Both testified in 2023 that they had not been involved in the laptop investigation. Prosecutors, however, pointed to evidence that they may have discussed the case with other FBI officials.
On Monday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui dismissed the charges. “What has transpired here cannot be described as anything other than weaponization,” he said.
Faruqui noted that prosecutors could have brought the cases earlier but filed the charges two weeks before the election. He also referred to a prime-time speech in which President Donald Trump discussed his grievances about the 2020 election.
“I will not bury my head in the sand and pretend that I cannot read a calendar,” Faruqui said. He criticized the government for rushing the prosecutions and said the charging documents contained “critical mistakes.”
Floris’ lawyer argued that the case was brought to shape public opinion ahead of the election. Her critics, meanwhile, cited an alleged text message in which she described herself as “basically running a shadow government” at the FBI.
Floris and Benavides had both served on the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force, which led the bureau’s efforts to counter foreign interference in the 2020 election. The task force has since been disbanded.
The Justice Department could still seek indictments against the two through a grand jury.
Faruqui has also faced criticism for apologizing in court to Cole Tomas Allen, who is accused of trying to assassinate Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in April. Allen’s attorneys said he had been placed on suicide watch and denied access to a Bible.
Faruqui is a federal magistrate judge. He was selected by the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., rather than nominated by a president and confirmed by the Senate.
