US PROSECUTORS FILE THIRD CRIMINAL CASE AGAINST JAMES COMEY

The US Justice Department has filed a third criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey, alleging that he shared national defence information with a New York Times reporter in October 2016. A document filed in Washington federal court accuses him of transmitting and conspiring to transmit the information. Prosecutors filed the document on 5 October to prevent the 10-year time limit for bringing charges from expiring, according to the Justice Department. The court made it public on Monday at the request of Comey’s lawyers.

Comey denied wrongdoing in a video posted online, saying: “I’m still innocent.” His lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, said the filing “purports to charge Mr Comey with crimes that he did not commit”. Fitzgerald said two previous teams of prosecutors had examined the alleged disclosure and decided against bringing charges. Comey’s lawyers have asked a judge to dismiss the new case, arguing that the filing is legally improper. Prosecutors used a criminal information, a charging document filed directly by a prosecutor rather than approved by a grand jury.

A judge dismissed an earlier case that accused Comey of lying to Congress; another case, concerning an alleged threat to President Donald Trump in a social media post, remains pending. Comey pleaded not guilty in the case involving his testimony to Congress, which also included an obstruction charge. Trump fired Comey during his first term, after Comey opened an investigation into claims of Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election. A Justice Department spokesperson called the filing procedure a “widely recognised practice in federal court” and said the investigation was ongoing.