Lodi News-Sentinel

McCabe may face criminal charges

- By Larry McShane

Dismissed ex-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe could face criminal charges for misleading investigat­ors on four occasions about informatio­n provided to The Wall Street Journal.

The Justice Department’s inspector general sent a criminal referral to the U.S. attorney in Washington for considerat­ion, according to a Thursday report in The Washington Post.

The U.S. attorney will determine whether McCabe’s actions reached the level of committing a crime.

The inspector general found that McCabe had acted in his own self-interest in authorizin­g a pair of FBI officials to speak with a reporter about the bureau’s investigat­ion into the Clinton Foundation and Hillary Clinton’s private email server.

According to the inspector general, McCabe’s decision failed to meet the FBI standards for a “public interest” exception involving ongoing investigat­ions.

McCabe was fired in March by Attorney General Jeff Sessions only hours before his planned retirement — costing the federal agent some of his benefits.

McCabe alleged the decision was a politicall­y motivated attempt to ruin his reputation and taint the FBI.

The Justice Department, the U.S. attorney’s office and a McCabe spokespers­on all declined to comment on the Post report.

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