Nonprofit sues FBI and DOJ for withholding video in Homan bribery case News
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Photographer: Donna Burton
Nonprofit sues FBI and DOJ for withholding video in Homan bribery case

Nonprofit organization Democracy Forward sued the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI on Monday after the agency failed to release key video recordings in an alleged bribery scheme case involving former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director Tom Homan.

Homan, currently Trump’s White House “Border Czar,” became the subject of a federal bribery investigation after he allegedly accepted a bag filled with $50,000 in cash from undercover FBI agents in September 2024. Agents reportedly posed as business executives and gave Homan the money after he offered to help them win government contracts in the second Trump administration.

Despite multiple requests from congressional representatives, extensive media coverage, and possible information leaks to news outlets, the DOJ and FBI have not released a video recording showing Homan accepting the cash. On September 20, the FBI and DOJ issued a statement saying they “found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing” and have subsequently closed the investigation. 

The lawsuit argued that if the DOJ and FBI withhold such information, it runs afoul of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which provides US citizens the right to request access to records from any US agency. Federal agencies must disclose any information requested under FOIA unless it falls within one of nine exemption categories.

Democracy Forward is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. the aims to promote government transparency and inform the public on government action. The organization requests relief in the form of an order requiring the DOJ and FBI to grant expedited processing and promptly release the non-exempt portions of the recording.

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