A top federal prosecutor in Florida has issued more than two dozen subpoenas targeting Donald Trump’s critics and perceived political enemies as part of a sprawling criminal inquiry into an alleged “conspiracy” among former officials who previously investigated the president.
Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones reportedly called a meeting of major crimes investigators on Monday after two top prosecutors resigned from the Southern District of Florida over the handling of the investigation, according to MSNBC.
The Department of Justice recently approved at least 30 subpoenas seeking information and testimony from prominent officials close to the intelligence report alleging Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, findings that the president has repeatedly labeled a “hoax” and a “witch hunt” against him.
Subpoenas were allegedly delivered to former national intelligence director James Clapper and former FBI agents Peter Strzok and Lisa Page.
Last month, notice of an upcoming grand jury signaled that Trump’s Justice Department was preparing to investigate the federal law enforcement raid at his Mar-a-Lago compound and what his allies have labeled a Democratic “conspiracy” against the president.
Trump ally Mike Davis told The Charlie Kirk Show last month that his “buddy” Quiñones received court approval to impanel a grand jury that “should be fully up and running by January.” A court document that appears to match that description recently appeared on the south Florida court’s website, The Independent previously reported.
The order does not mention what the jury will be investigating, but it has a start date of January 12, 2026.
“Justice is coming,” Davis said in response to news of the subpoenas.
Most federal crimes have a statute of limitations of five years, and offenses must be charged within the district where the allegations occurred. It remains unclear how the probe is connected to Florida, drawing speculation that prosecutors are linking the case to the investigation into the president’s hoarding of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago.
The Independent has requested comment from the Justice Department.
The officials allegedly under investigation and subject to the latest Justice Department subpoenas were already scrutinized under probes from former counsel John Durham and former Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, whose investigations found no evidence to support charges against them.
Last month, former CIA director John Brennan — who led the nation’s intelligence agency during the investigation — was criminally accused of making false statements to Congress about his role in the probe.
In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, House Judiciary Committee chair Jim Jordan claimed Brennan “knowingly made false statements” to the panel during an interview in May 2023.
The allegations stem from the so-called Steele dossier, a series of largely discredited documents compiled by a former British intelligence officer, which accused the president and his allies of conspiring with the Kremlin.
Those documents’ sensational allegations were largely uncorroborated, while Republicans alleged that the memo was part of a Democratic-led conspiracy to undermine Trump’s campaign.
U.S. intelligence agencies ultimately determined that Russian-backed interference in 2016 sought to boost Trump through a coordinated disinformation campaign while damaging his then-opponent, Hillary Clinton.
The president and his allies continue to attack the findings in the so-called “Russiagate” investigation while vowing to seek revenge against those involved.
The Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into allegations that national security officials conspired to link Trump to Russia’s election interference campaign in an effort to delegitimize his campaign, following claims from Trump’s intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard that the Obama administration “manufactured and politicized intelligence to lay the groundwork for what was essentially a years-long coup” against Trump.
Trump — after campaigning on a theme of “retribution” and pledging to be a “warrior” and “justice” to those who were “betrayed” by the government — has also publicly demanded his Justice Department prosecute his opponents.
In quick succession, grand juries indicted former FBI director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and former national security director John Bolton. They have pleaded not guilty.
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