Examining James Comey’s latest charges

By Easton Martin

Federal prosecutors have unsealed a third set of criminal charges against former FBI Director James Comey, charging him with unlawfully transmitting national defense information and conspiring to do so under the Espionage Act. According to court records unsealed by U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, the two-count criminal information was originally filed under seal on October 5 and centers on the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive government information to the media.

This filing marks the third federal prosecution initiated against Comey within a 13-month period. In September 2025, federal prosecutors charged Comey with making false statements to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding regarding his testimony on federal investigations and media leaks. A federal judge dismissed those charges after ruling that the prosecutor overseeing the case had been unlawfully appointed, a decision the Department of Justice has appealed.

 In April 2026, prosecutors in North Carolina secured a separate indictment over a May 2025 Instagram post featuring seashells arranged to form the numbers “8647,” which the government charged as a threat against President Donald Trump.

Comey, who was dismissed from his role as FBI Director in May 2017 during the bureau’s investigation into the 2016 presidential election, has pleaded not guilty to the previous charges and filed motions to dismiss the latest counts.