一位知情人士告诉美国广播公司新闻,联邦调查局周三突袭了民主党众议员亨利·库勒尔在得克萨斯州的家和竞选办公室,这是联邦政府对前苏联国家阿塞拜疆和几名美国商人进行广泛调查的一部分。
美国广播公司新闻获悉,华盛顿的一个联邦大陪审团正在调查此事,但尚不清楚库埃拉尔是否是大陪审团调查的目标。
在联邦调查局特工之后执行搜查令在库埃拉尔位于得克萨斯州拉雷多的家中,库埃拉尔的一名助手在一份声明中说,这位国会议员“将在任何调查中全力配合。”
声明称:“他致力于确保正义和法律得到维护。
周三,一名联邦调查局发言人强调,库埃拉尔家庭和竞选办公室的任何“执法活动”都是“法院授权的”
库埃拉尔代表美国和墨西哥边境的得克萨斯州第28个国会选区,自2005年以来一直在国会任职。近年来,他担任了阿塞拜疆国会核心小组的共同主席,并多次会见阿塞拜疆官员,包括阿塞拜疆大使埃琳·苏莱曼诺夫。
库埃拉尔众议员办公室/网站
在2013年5月来自众议员亨利·库勒尔网站的一张照片中,库埃拉尔遇到了机智..
过去一年,库埃拉尔经常批评拜登政府的一些边境相关政策。
联邦调查局和司法部的发言人拒绝对此事发表评论。
FBI raid on House Democrat's home related to Azerbaijan probe, source says
The FBI on Wednesday raided Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar's home and campaign office in Texas as part of a wide-ranging federal probe relating to the former Soviet state of Azerbaijan and several U.S. businessmen, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
A federal grand jury in Washington is investigating the matter, but it's unclear if Cuellar is a target of the grand jury's probe, ABC News was told.
After FBI agentsexecuted a search warrantat Cuellar's home in Laredo, Texas, an aide to Cuellar said in a statement that the congressman "will fully cooperate in any investigation."
"He is committed to ensuring that justice and the law are upheld," the statement said.
On Wednesday, an FBI spokesperson emphasized that any "law enforcement activity" at Cuellar's home and campaign office was "court-authorized."
Cuellar, who represents Texas' 28th Congressional District along the U.S.-Mexico border, has been in Congress since 2005. In recent years he has served as a co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, and repeatedly met with Azerbaijan officials, including the ambassador of Azerbaijan, Elin Suleymanov.
Over the past year, Cuellar has frequently criticized the Biden administration for some of its border-related policies.
Spokespeople for the FBI and Justice Department declined to comment for this story.