Mueller ‘Ready To Indict Some Folks,’ Former FBI Official Says
Head of Special Counsel Investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election Robert Mueller is “ready to indict some folks,” according to former FBI official Frank Figliuzzi.
In an interview broadcast today, Figliuzzi, who was the FBI’s former assistant director for counterintelligence, said the following, as quoted by The Hill.
“I’m not saying he’s indicting the president. I’m saying there’s a middle ground where he tells us the story, locks it into the court system by indicting others, then files a report with [acting Attorney General Matthew] Whitaker.”
Robert Mueller, according to his former colleague Figliuzzi, “will tell the story of a corrupt president through indictments.’
According to Figliuzzi, indicting the president’s closest confidants could be Mueller’s strategy, but given that Jeff Sessions had been fired by President Trump and replaced by acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, Mueller has to speak to the United States public “very soon” with new indictments.
Matthew Whitaker’s appointment has caused widespread controversy and continues to provoke speculation about the potential termination of Mueller’s Russia probe, raising questions about Trump’s influence on it. In a CNN op-ed written last year, Whitaker, who was then Jeff Sessions’ chief of staff, argued that Mueller is “dangerously close to crossing” the red line, following rumors that the head of special counsel was looking into Donald Trump’s finances.
Whitaker further argued that Mueller has too much power in the investigation, and suggested in subsequent media interviews that Jeff Sessions could be replaced with an attorney general willing to limit the scope of Mueller’s Russia probe.
Mueller's new boss has indicated that Mueller's investigators are a “lynch mob," mused about reducing Mueller’s budget to "grind" him to a halt, called Trump finances a "red line" & shared an article exploring the process by which Trump could fire Mueller. https://t.co/outUebEVE6
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) November 7, 2018
Furthermore, on multiple occasions, Whitaker argued that the president should put pressure on Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to lower Mueller’s budget, and suggested that Trump should develop a strategy to put pressure on Mueller and effectively force him to terminate the investigation.
But it is exactly Whitaker’s appointment that could speed everything up, according to Figliuzzi, who claims that Mueller has essentially been forced to start indicting those close to the president.
On November 5, citing numerous former and current White House officials, Vanity Fair reported that the highest office in the land is preparing for “the Mueller storm,” and one of the magazine’s sources even suggested that the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., could be indicted soon.
“I’m very worried about Don Jr.,” the official said.
As the Inquisitr reported earlier today, intelligence sources briefed on the matter told the press that the Russia probe is about to take a major step forward. Along with Trump Jr., longtime Trump confidant and Republican operative Roger Stone could also face indictment from Mueller’s team, according to reports.
