Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., submitted a criminal referral notification to the Justice Department on Thursday, targeting individuals tied to the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation.
In a brief letter, Nunes informs Attorney General William Barr he and Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, want to meet to discuss eight criminal referrals, which are ready for consideration, as part of the House Intelligence Committee's years-long examination of alleged misconduct during the Russia probe.
“As part of that investigation, Committee Republicans identified several potential violations of the law,” Nunes, R-Calif., wrote in the letter to Barr on Thursday. Nunes said his staff will contact the DOJ to arrange a time.
Nunes, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, has been teasing a referral of Justice Department and FBI officials for months. During a Fox News interview on Sunday, Nunes said his referral will target eight people and place them into three categories. The first, which Nunes described as "straight-up referrals," covered five individuals whose "crimes are lying to Congress, misleading Congress, leaking classified information." Two others related to "charges of conspiracy to lie to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court" and the last to a "global leak referral."
Nunes' letter did not identify who was was subject to the referral, nor did it identify the alleged crimes.