Ex-FBI Officials Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides Charged With Lying to Congress: Patel, Pirro, Trump React
On Oct. 23, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia charged two former senior FBI officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, with one count each of making false statements to Congress under 18 U.S.C. § 1001. Both surrendered and appeared before a federal magistrate judge in Washington. A statement of facts prepared by the FBI alleges that Floris, who led the bureau's since-dissolved Foreign Influence Task Force as a deputy assistant director from mid-2019 to mid-2022, falsely told the House Judiciary Committee on July 19, 2023, that the task force was not involved in the Hunter Biden investigations, and that Benavides did the same in September 2023. The complaint says the officials took part in classified briefings and sent messages about information uncovered by Sens. Ron Johnson and Chuck Grassley. FBI Director Kash Patel said "documentary evidence, contemporaneous communications, and witness accounts contradict their testimony." Trump, asked about the case in Florida, said he had heard "they were bad people." Floris's attorneys called the charges "nonsense" and said she was "accused … falsely of a crime on the say-so of politicians, not on the facts"; Benavides's attorney, Ron Safer, said the government "has had the information about this for years." Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui questioned prosecutors' decision to proceed by criminal complaint on three-year-old allegations. A preliminary hearing is set for the following Tuesday.
“[To reporters in Florida, asked about the charges:] I don't know exactly what it is, but I heard they were arrested or charged. And I heard they were bad people. … Dirty cops, like Comey.”