Comey charged a third time over national defense information, days before midterms

Federal prosecutors have charged former FBI Director James Comey with transmission of national defense information and conspiracy to transmit national defense information, NBC News reported Monday ¹. It is the third federal case against Comey brought by the Trump administration ¹.

The charges are allegations, not findings. NBC reports that Comey "has not been indicted in the latest case against him." An indictment is a grand jury's formal decision to bring charges. The case has been under seal, meaning hidden from the public, since Oct. 5 ¹.

Comey's defense attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the charges last week, NBC reports. The outlet's brief account does not describe the arguments in that motion ¹.

A long-running target

NBC describes Comey as a longtime Trump target since he started the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election ¹. Bloomberg Law reported in April that prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia had revived a separate probe into whether Comey leaked classified information. It said that probe involved documents he shared with Columbia University law professor Daniel Richman ².

From Channel GOPCrockett lists Bondi's failed cases against Trump criticsJasmine Crockett · 131 plays · captioned, with the source named

Bloomberg's sources said the probe had stalled after prosecutors first reviewed it last year. They said it was revived under "heightened pressure under Blanche's leadership to reopen matters important to the president." That refers to Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general at the time ². The Justice Department and Comey's lawyer declined to comment to Bloomberg ². It is not clear from the sources reviewed whether Monday's charges come from that probe.

The earlier cases did not go well for prosecutors. A first Virginia case, over alleged false statements to Congress, was dismissed by a judge last year ². In April, prosecutors in eastern North Carolina obtained an indictment tied to an alleged social media threat against the president ².

What happens next

The judge must now rule on the defense motion to dismiss. The sources reviewed do not say when a ruling may come, and they do not say which court is handling the case ¹. We could not find a Justice Department statement or a response from Democratic lawmakers in the reporting available Monday.

That matters because the charge arrives eight days before the Nov. 3 midterm election. The pattern is a Justice Department that keeps returning to a figure the president has long criticized, even after one case was dismissed ¹². Only a court can decide whether this case has merit.

The Record

1. Dec 31, 2025A judge dismissed the first Virginia case against Comey, over alleged false statements to Congress. Bloomberg reported the dismissal came 'last year,' and the exact date was not given ².
2. Apr 28, 2026Prosecutors in eastern North Carolina obtained an indictment tied to an alleged social media threat against the president ².
3. Oct 5, 2026The new case against Comey was placed under seal, according to NBC News ¹.
4. Oct 26, 2026Prosecutors charged Comey with transmitting national defense information and conspiracy, NBC News reported ¹.

Sources

1. NBC News, “James Comey charged for a third time by the Trump administration” (2026-10-26). nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/former-fbi-james-com
2. Bloomberg Law, “Trump DOJ Pursuing Separate Comey Probe for Classified Leaks” (2026-04-30). news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/trump-doj-pursuing-separate

Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.