Former President Donald Trump has allegedly attempted to contact a witness not yet seen in the hearings of the House January 6 committee and the panel has notified the Department of Justice of the revelation.
These details were presented by Vice Chairwoman Liz Cheney – a Wyoming Republican- in perhaps the most unexpected moment of Tuesday’s hearing and it’s the second time that the panel’s public hearings raise the possibility of a witness tampering investigation.
According to Cheney, Trump allegedly attempted to contact a witness who has not yet been publicly identified and has not been featured in the committee’s presentations. The witness declined to answer or respond to Trump’s call, and instead alerted their lawyer who alerted the committee.
Rep. Jamie Raskin noted after the hearing that the panel isn’t sure if the incident amounts to witness tampering – which is a federal crime – and the DC US Attorney’s Office, which is handling January 6 prosecutions, declined to comment.
Communicating with a witness alone isn’t necessarily witness tampering since – under federal law – the person communicating with the witness would have to know their approach is wrong and could affect a proceeding. But Cheney didn’t disclose the substance of the Trump call.
However, the incident might prompt interest from the FBI and the department prosecutors now that the committee has sent the information to DOJ.
According to Raskin, Trump has shown a more sophisticated way of controlling these witnesses, including by paying for defense attorneys, through his political spheres.
The Department of Justice has successfully pursued witness tampering charges before, in the House’s Russia investigation against Roger Stone for his testimony, and more recently, two criminal contempt of Congress indictments related to testimony about Trump have been brought by the House’s January 6 inquiry.
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