A former top adviser in the Trump White House has been indicted on criminal contempt charges after refusing to co-operate with the congressional investigation into the January 6th attack on the US capitol in 2020.
Peter Navarro, a former trade adviser to Donald Trump, was arrested by the FBI and appeared in court in Washington on Friday.
Mr Navarro, who is 72, is charged with one contempt count involving his refusal to appear for a deposition and another involving his refusal to produce documents to the committee, according to a seven-page indictment.
A criminal conviction for contempt of the US Congress can result in a fine of up to $100,000 and a maximum of one year in prison. However it does not compel an individual to talk or give evidence to the committee.
In court on Friday afternoon Mr Navarro hit out at the House of Representatives committee and the FBI. He said he had been arrested at the airport on his way to Nashville rather than at his home which, he maintained, was 100 yards from the FBI building. A further hearing is likely to take place later in June.
The House of Representatives select committee investigating the January 6th attack on the Capitol by supporters of former president Trump issued a subpoena to Mr Navarro in early February.
Mr Navarro since leaving the White House has written a book and spoken publicly about a strategy — known as the “Green Bay sweep”, aimed at changing the outcome of the 2020 presidential election..
In its subpoena, the select committee said it had reason to believe that Navarro had information relevant to its investigation.
Prosecutors maintained that Mr Navarro did not communicate at all with the committee after receiving the subpoena.
The indictment said that Mr Navarro had replied to the committee after the deadline for submission of documents had passed, in which he said: “President Trump has invoked executive privilege in this matter ... Accordingly my hands are tied.”
Prosecutors said that when the committee said several topics did not raise executive privilege concerns, Mr Navarro argued that the privilege “is not mine to waive” and the committee must directly negotiate the matter with Mr Trump and his lawyers.
Another former key Trump aide, Steve Bannon, was indicted in November on similar charges.
The indictment against Mr Navarro came nearly two months after the House of Representatives voted mostly along party lines to recommend that he should face criminal charges. The same vote also urged a contempt indictment against another of Mr Trump’s top aides, Dan Scavino Jr.
The House of Representatives has also recommended that former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows should face contempt charges.
The US Justice department has yet to take action on the criminal referrals against Mr Meadows or Mr Scavino.
The House of Representatives select committee is scheduled to commence high profile prime time public hearings into the events of January 6th next week.
