DOJ Charges Former FBI Director James Comey for Third Time Over Alleged 2016 National Defense Disclosure

The Justice Department charged former FBI Director James Comey on Monday with two counts related to the alleged unauthorized disclosure of national defense information in 2016, marking the third set of federal charges against him since the start of the Trump administration’s second term.

A criminal information unsealed Monday in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia accuses Comey of knowingly and willfully communicating information relating to the national defense to a person not entitled to receive it, and of conspiring with others to do so. The filing, dated October 5, 2026, alleges that on or about that same date in 2016, Comey, acting “through one and more co-conspirators,” directed an unidentified individual to disclose the information to a reporter for a national news publication. The three-page document does not name the reporter, the outlet, the specific information, or the co-conspirators.

Prosecutors filed the information—rather than an indictment returned by a grand jury—to toll the 10-year statute of limitations on the alleged offense. A Justice Department spokesperson said the department “filed a waiverless criminal information to toll the statute of limitations as it relates to allegations concerning former FBI Director Comey” and described the matter as “an ongoing criminal investigation.” Multiple federal appeals courts have recognized the practice. Comey’s lawyers moved to dismiss the case while it remained under seal, arguing that the law requires a grand jury indictment within the limitations period and that prior investigations into the same matter concluded without charges.

The charges concern an October 5, 2016, New York Times article by Charlie Savage headlined “Yahoo Said to Have Aided U.S. Email Surveillance by Adapting Spam Filter.” In a filing unsealed Monday, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin Farahnak wrote that the investigation found evidence Comey sought to correct misinformation that had appeared in a Reuters report the previous day. Patrick Fitzgerald, Comey’s attorney, said the underlying matter had already been examined twice during the first Trump administration, with both reviews determining that no charges should be brought. Fitzgerald stated that Comey “steadfastly maintains his innocence.”

This is the third federal case the Justice Department has brought against Comey. In September 2025, a grand jury in Virginia indicted him on false-statement and obstruction charges tied to his 2020 Senate testimony regarding contacts with the media. That case was dismissed in November 2025 after a judge ruled that interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan had been unlawfully appointed. In April 2026, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina indicted him on charges of threatening the president and transmitting an interstate threat in connection with a May 2025 Instagram post showing seashells arranged to form “86 47.” That case remains pending, with Comey seeking dismissal on First Amendment and selective-prosecution grounds; proceedings have been continued into 2027.

Comey responded in a video posted to Substack. “Well, they’re back—again,” he said. “It would almost be funny if it weren’t such an appalling abuse of the Department of Justice, one that we cannot become numb to. Nothing’s changed with me. I’m still innocent. I’m still not afraid of these people, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary.” He added that he is “still lucky to have an amazing family and an incredible group of lawyers that will stand up in court and fight the latest and whatever comes after this.”

The new charges were unsealed on the same day a federal judge in New York ruled that the Justice Department had unlawfully fired Comey’s daughter, Maurene Comey, from her position as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York in July 2025 and ordered her retroactive reinstatement with back pay. A Justice Department spokesperson said the department disagrees with that ruling and will appeal. Comey served as FBI director from 2013 until President Trump fired him in May 2017.