Former FBI Director James Comey Charged a Third Time: DOJ Alleges 2016 Disclosure of National Defense Information to a Reporter
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on October 26 made public a previously sealed criminal information charging former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey for a third time. The filing alleges that on or about October 5, 2016, in the District of Columbia and elsewhere, Comey knowingly and willfully communicated information relating to the national defense to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 793(d). The information was filed on October 5 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Case No. 26-cr-00229-TNM, and unsealed on October 26.
The three-page filing lists two counts. Count One alleges that Comey, while lawfully possessing and being entrusted with documents and information relating to the national defense, and having reason to believe the information could be used to injure the United States or to the advantage of a foreign nation, communicated it to a person not entitled to receive it. Count Two charges conspiracy: it alleges that Comey and others, known and unknown, conspired over a period ending not later than October 4, 2016, to commit the same offense, and that on October 5, 2016, acting through one or more co-conspirators, he directed "Individual #1" to disclose national defense information to a reporter for a national news publication, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 793(d) and (g). The filing includes a forfeiture notice and is signed by Acting Deputy Attorney General R. Trent McCotter and others. A conviction under Section 793(d) carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.
Comey responded in a video posted to Instagram on October 26. "Hey, they're back again. This time it's about my book in the fall of 2016. And I'm still innocent and I'm not afraid," he said. "They want to silence me, and I'm just not going to be silent just because I love this country too much. Let's have a trial again." According to The Washington Post, Comey said in the video that the country had entered an "era of retribution," and the Post, citing law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation, reported that the case appears tied to disclosures to reporters in October 2016 connected to Comey's handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation. DOJ lead spokeswoman Natalie Baldassarre declined to comment.
Comey served as FBI director from 2013 to 2017 and was fired by President Trump in 2017. The case is the third criminal case the Justice Department has brought against Comey since Trump returned to office: in September 2025 Comey was indicted in Virginia on charges of making false statements to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding, a case a judge dismissed in November 2025 after ruling that the prosecutor who brought it was unlawfully appointed; in April 2026 he was indicted in North Carolina in a case tied to his "86 47" seashell photograph post, which remains pending — Comey has denied wrongdoing and moved to dismiss it. All charges in the new case are allegations by prosecutors; Comey has not been convicted in this case, and further court proceedings have yet to be scheduled.
Related: Judge Rules Firing of Prosecutor Maurene Comey Unlawful in Blow to Trump Administration
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：前联邦调查局局长詹姆斯·科米官方肖像。美国联邦调查局（FBI），公共领域，经维基共享资源。 / Official portrait of former FBI Director James Comey. Federal Bureau of Investigation, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
- 2026-10-26Former FBI Director James Comey Charged a Third Time: DOJ Alleges 2016 Disclosure of National Defense Information to a ReporterThis story
- 2026-10-31Follow-Up: Justice Department Says It May Bring More Charges Against Comey, Seeks Grand Jury Indictment
