Why ex-FBI Director James Comey has been indicted – what it means

The former director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation has been accused of lying to Congress over Russian election interference investigation.

Former FBI Director indicted: James Comey faces charges of making false statements

by Elizabeth Melimopoulos
September 26, 2025

The former United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey has been charged with lying to Congress.
He’s the first former senior government official to face charges tied to one of President Donald Trump’s biggest complaints: The investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

The Justice Department says Comey could face up to five years in prison if he’s found guilty.

Who is James Comey?

James Comey was director of the FBI from 2013 to 2017, serving under President Barack Obama.

In 2017, after he became president, Donald Trump fired him while he was leading an investigation into whether Trump or his campaign had worked with Russia to influence the outcome of the 2016 election, which Trump, the Republican candidate, won against Democrat Hillary Clinton.

After Comey was dismissed, Special Counsel Robert Mueller took over the Russia investigation.

The investigation lasted nearly two years and found that Russia had made major efforts to sway the 2016 election. Ultimately, it did not prove there was any criminal conspiracy involving Trump or his team, but the case hung over Trump for years, and he condemned it as a “witch-hunt”.

Donald Trump (top) speaks at a campaign event in Washington, DC, as Hillary Clinton listens during a town hall debate in Washington, DC, on October 26, 2016 Carlo Allegri, Shannon Stapleton photo

What are the charges against Comey?

The case against Comey is not about the details of the Russia investigation. It focuses only on whether he lied to senators during his 2020 testimony about the investigation to the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2020.

At a September 30 hearing, Republican Senator Ted Cruz asked whether he had ever authorised anyone at the FBI to leak information to the press about investigations into Hillary Clinton’s emails and possible links between the Trump campaign and Russia.

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Comey said he had never allowed anyone at the bureau to act as an anonymous source in news reports. That statement conflicted, however, with testimony from former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, who said Comey had, in fact, given such approval.

The indictment’s first count – making false statements – claims Comey knowingly lied under oath during that hearing.

The second count – obstruction of a congressional proceeding – accuses him of trying to interfere with the committee’s investigation by giving false and misleading testimony.

Overall, the Trump administration aims to cast the Russia investigation as part of an effort by the former President Barack Obama administration to leverage Moscow’s alleged interference in the election and to undermine the legitimacy of Trump’s victory