Judge Drops Case Against Two Ex-FBI Agents Over Hunter Biden Laptop
Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui dismissed the complaint after criticizing prosecutors for filing an amended charge without court approval.
By Alessia Romano ·
A federal judge in Washington dismissed a criminal complaint against two former FBI officials on Monday. The agents, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, were accused of falsely downplaying their knowledge of a laptop that the Justice Department says belonged to Hunter Biden.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui issued the ruling after a hearing where he scolded prosecutors for their unorthodox maneuvers. An FBI agent who worked the case testified that he worried the investigation would appear political. The Justice Department can still seek a grand jury indictment, but the dismissal is a clear setback for the agency.
The judge questioned why the case was charged via a criminal complaint rather than a grand jury indictment. Criminal complaints are typically used when investigators need to take a defendant into custody quickly. This case did not meet that standard, according to the judge's observations.
The judge also criticized the Department of Justice for filing an amended complaint overnight. This filing added a new criminal charge directly to the docket. The judge said he had never seen a new charge filed without first clearing it with the court. This procedural move added to his concerns about the handling of the case.
Testimony revealed that the investigation opened hours after President Donald Trump gave an election security speech in July. FBI Director Kash Patel mandated the inquiry and kept close watch on it. The agents were accused of misleading Congress in 2023 about their involvement in investigating the laptop.
The laptop was dropped off at a Delaware computer repair shop in 2019. The Justice Department claims it belonged to Hunter Biden, son of former President Joe Biden. The case echoed grievances from Trump and Republican allies who argued the FBI suppressed information during the 2020 campaign that could have harmed the Biden family.
The prosecution noted that Floris and Benavides gave lawmakers a defensive briefing in 2020. Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin stated that this briefing was used to undermine their investigation. They argued it linked the probe into the Biden administration to Russian disinformation.
