Judge drops case against two former FBI agents over Hunter Biden laptop testimony

A federal judge dismissed a criminal complaint against two former FBI officials on Monday, ending their prosecution for allegedly lying to Congress about the Hunter Biden laptop investigation. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui determined that the government had not established probable cause for the charges against Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides. The agents had testified before the House Judiciary Committee in 2023 regarding their roles in the Foreign Influence Task Force and the broader probe into the laptop. Data from that abandoned computer eventually led to criminal charges against Hunter Biden.

The case originated from a criminal complaint rather than a federal grand jury indictment. This procedural route avoided a jury in Washington that has recently shown skepticism toward politically charged cases, including the rejected indictment of Cassidy Hutchinson. Judge Faruqui noted that an FBI agent testified at a preliminary hearing last week that the investigation, directed by FBI Director Kash Patel, might be perceived as political. The agent also confirmed that a prosecutor admitted the complaint was flawed during a phone call.

The prosecutor involved is Carlton Davis, a former Republican Hill staffer and top aide to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro. Davis previously participated in the failed attempt to indict six sitting members of Congress over a social media video critical of President Donald Trump. Pirro’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling. Judge Faruqui had previously criticized the government for filing a new unsigned complaint on the court docket without judicial permission.

Floris and Benavides had faced intense criticism from allies of the president. Both worked on security issues for the 2020 presidential election, a race that President Trump has claimed was stolen. While the Justice Department could theoretically retry the case before a grand jury, such an outcome appears unlikely given the judge’s finding that the initial complaint did not meet the legal standard for probable cause.

Attorneys for Benavides praised the decision in a written statement, describing the accusations as political theater. They stated that Benavides is a patriot, a public servant, and innocent. The legal team expressed gratitude that Judge Faruqui weighed the evidence against the law and found the government could not meet the low burden of probable cause. The attorneys added that they hope the government does not move the case to a grand jury, where proceedings are closed to the public and the defense cannot present its side of the story.