Two former FBI officials face separate false-statement charges

A federal criminal complaint accuses former FBI officials Nikki Cole Floris and Bradley Benavides of making separate false statements during 2023 interviews with the House Judiciary Committee about their awareness of and involvement in the FBI’s Hunter Biden investigations. Each faces one alleged violation of federal law; neither allegation is a court finding.

The Justice Department announced the case on Oct. 23, 2026, and said both defendants had surrendered on arrest warrants. The complaint had been filed three days earlier, on Oct. 20, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The defendants appeared in federal court in Washington on Oct. 23.

Separate interviews, one alleged statement each i

The complaint ties the allegations to different interviews more than two months apart. It alleges that Floris made a materially false statement on July 19, 2023, and that Benavides made one on Sept. 28, 2023. The filing alleges each statement was made knowingly and willfully, but those claims have not been established in court.

The complaint cites 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)(2), which the Justice Department describes as covering materially false statements in a matter within the legislative branch’s jurisdiction. It alleges one violation against each defendant—not two charges against either person—and concerns two separate interviews rather than a joint appearance.

The defendants’ attorneys denied the allegations. Floris’s lawyers said she was falsely accused; Benavides’s lawyers called the charges baseless and politically motivated. Those are defense arguments, not findings about the case.

The case had not reached a grand jury i

A complaint is not an indictment or a verdict. As of Oct. 26, prosecutors had not presented the allegations to a grand jury for indictment, according to The Associated Press. The complaint initiated criminal proceedings, but the government’s accusations had not been resolved by a court.

A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Oct. 27, the day after that status date. The scheduled hearing was the next reported court step; no outcome was available as of Oct. 26. The Justice Department says defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.