Justice Department alleges longtime NIAID official used personal email and falsified records tied to pandemic-era research grant communications.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Department of Justice announced Tuesday that it has indicted a former senior advisor to Anthony Fauci on charges including conspiracy against the United States and alleged efforts to conceal federal records related to COVID-19 research.
According to a Justice Department statement, David Morens, 78, faces charges that include destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations, as well as concealment and removal of official documents. The indictment also includes aiding and abetting allegations.
Morens served from 2006 to 2022 as a senior advisor at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, where he worked closely with Fauci, according to a prior C-SPAN record.
Prosecutors allege that Morens, along with two unnamed co-conspirators, participated in a scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic to defraud the United States and obscure communications after a federal research grant was terminated. The grant, titled “Understanding the Risk of Bat Coronavirus Emergence,” had been awarded by NIAID and included a subaward to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.
Following the termination of the grant amid scrutiny over the origins of COVID-19, Morens and others allegedly sought to reinstate funding and counter claims that the virus may have originated from a laboratory setting. The indictment states that participants anticipated their communications could be subject to Freedom of Information Act requests and agreed to avoid disclosure by using personal email accounts, including Morens’s Gmail, instead of official government systems.
“These allegations represent a profound abuse of trust at a time when the American people needed it most—during the height of a global pandemic,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.
“As alleged in the indictment, Dr. Morens and his co-conspirators deliberately concealed information and falsified records in an effort to suppress alternative theories regarding the origins of COVID-19,” Blanche added.
The Justice Department stated that Morens’ role at NIAID included advising senior leadership on policy matters, contributing to scientific publications, and providing expertise on epidemiological research and infectious disease response.
Kash Patel also commented on the case, stating that efforts to bypass federal records requirements would not be tolerated.
“Circumventing records protocols with the intention of avoiding transparency is something that will not be tolerated,” Patel said. “Not only did Morens allegedly engage in the illegal obfuscation of his communications, but he received kickbacks for doing so.”
The case remains pending, and Morens has not been reported to have entered a plea as of the announcement.
Original article
Comments