Trump-Russia inquiry: President 'probed for obstruction of justice
President Donald Trump is being investigated by special counsel Robert Mueller for possible obstruction of justice, US media reports say.
They say senior intelligence officials will be interviewed about whether Mr Trump tried to end an inquiry into his sacked national security adviser.
Mr Trump's legal team said the latest leak to the media was "outrageous".
Mr Mueller is overseeing an FBI inquiry into Russia's alleged meddling the 2016 US election and any Trump links to it.
President Trump has repeatedly denied any collusion with Russia, describing the ongoing inquiry as a "witch hunt".
The latest development was first carried in the Washington Post. Later the New York Times and Wall St Journal reported the story, citing their own sources.
- Is Trump closer to obstruction of justice?
- A legal 'dream team' looking at Trump
- Russia: The 'cloud' over the White House
- Who is Robert Mueller?
On Wednesday, the Washington Post described the decision by Mr Mueller to investigate President Trump's own conduct as a major turning point in the investigation, which until recently focused on the Russian angle.
Quoting unnamed officials, the newspaper said Daniel Coats, the director of national intelligence, Mike Rogers, the head of the National Security Agency, and Richard Ledgett, until recently Mr Rogers' deputy, agreed to be interviewed by investigators.
The questioning could happen as early as this week.
The unnamed officials told the newspaper the obstruction of justice investigation began just days after President Trump fired former FBI director James Comey on 9 May.
Before the sacking, Mr Trump had sought and received assurances from Mr Comey that he personally was not under investigation.
However, Mr Comey has since suggested that Mr Trump attempted to get him to shut down the investigation into his sacked former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
Mr Flynn was fired in February for failing to reveal the extent of his contacts with Sergei Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to Washington.
The White House has denied it put pressure on Mr Comey.
Comments
Post a Comment