Andrew McCabe was not charged, a sign that the case could be threatened

A federal grand jury has met this week, according to people familiar with its deliberations. The days of drama behind closed doors without any sign of accusation could indicate that prosecutors have encountered an unexpected snafu.

In an email dated Thursday, McCabe's lawyer, Michael Bromwich, asked the US attorney in Washington,

Jessie Liu,

to confirm Mr. McCabe's status, saying that he had spoken to the prosecutors involved in the case, Joseph Cooney and Molly Gaston, earlier on Thursday.

"At a minimum, based on our discussion with Mr. Cooney and Ms. Gaston this afternoon, it is clear that no indictment has been rendered," wrote Mr. Bromwich. .

A DOJ spokeswoman declined to comment.

Mr. McCabe was under federal criminal investigation since the Department of Justice 's internal oversight service concluded last year that he had misled investigators into his role in the provision of services. information in October 2016 to a Wall Street Journal reporter. Mr. McCabe has long disputed the allegations. He was fired from his job in March 2018, just one day before he could retire with all benefits.

Prosecutors presented the case to a grand jury in Washington last week, according to people close to the case. At least 12 members of the jury – ranging from 16 to 23 people – must vote in favor of an indictment for it to be rendered. It is extremely rare for a grand jury to refuse an indictment requested by prosecutors because it hears only the version of the events presented by the government and does not require unanimity. A common joke in the legal profession is that a grand jury could indict a ham sandwich, if asked.

Mr. McCabe's legal team argued that if a grand jury dismissed the case, it was by no means possible for a first instance jury, with a much heavier burden of proof, to convict the accused. former deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

"If the grand jury decided not to approve the charges, it did not find a probable cause. Therefore, it is simply not reasonable to believe that a trial jury would find Mr. McCabe guilty of any charge using a much more rigorous and rigorous standard – beyond a reasonable doubt, "wrote M Bromwich.

The Washington Post reported Thursday that the grand jury had been released Thursday without any immediate sign of accusation.

The investigation focused on Mr. McCabe's comments to officers from the FBI's Inspection Division on May 9, 2017 and subsequent interviews with the Inspector General's Office. During these interviews, Mr. McCabe reportedly said he did not know who had spoken to the newspaper about a phone call he had had with a senior Justice Department official in 2016 about a investigating the Clinton Foundation, while he had authorized his lawyer to provide the information. McCabe said he never deliberately misled the investigators and cited the "chaos" of the day, which led to Mr. Trump being sacked.

James Comey

as director of the FBI, making Mr. McCabe the acting director of the office.

Last month, Mr. McCabe sued the Justice Ministry, claiming that his dismissal was illegal and was part of a plot to remove law enforcement officials deemed insufficiently loyal to M Trump.

The case comes just days after former White House lawyer Greg Craig was acquitted of a misrepresentation by the same US lawyer in Washington.

Prosecutors at this office had recommended accusing Mr. McCabe and his legal team has met with the Deputy Attorney General in recent weeks to try to convince him otherwise. On Thursday, the Deputy Attorney General's office informed McCabe's lawyers that he had rejected their arguments, paving the way for a possible indictment.

Write to Aruna Viswanatha at [email protected] and Byron Tau at [email protected]