Two ex-FBI officials are charged with lying to US Congress over Hunter Biden laptop on the eve of the midterms

Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, who led the FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force in 2020, surrendered to authorities on Friday. Prosecutors claim one of them told investigators they had first learned of the Hunter Biden investigations through Wikipedia. FBI Director Kash Patel says Floris privately boasted of 'running a shadow government'. Each faces a single count of making false statements to Congress.

The charges stem from House Judiciary Committee interviews held in July and September 2023.

Floris's lawyers have branded them 'nonsense charges' timed to coincide with an election.

US Attorney Jeanine Pirro says the pair worked to 'shape the public narrative' about the laptop.