Former White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro, a top ally of failed, one-term former President Donald Trump, was indicted today and is in custody on criminal charges, according to NBC News.
Navarro, 72, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday for contempt after snubbing a subpoena from the House committee investigating Jan. 6 seeking testimony and documents.
Court documents indicate that the government requested that Navarro’s indictment be sealed until his “arrest operation is executed.” The U.S. Attorney’s Office told NBC News that Navarro “is in custody pending the court appearance” later Friday.
The contempt charges could send Navarro to prison for up to two years.
The House Select Committee on the January 6 Capitol insurrection noted in their February 9 subpoena of Navarro that they believed he “had information relevant to its investigation. Navarro, formerly an adviser to the president on various trade and manufacturing policies, has been a private citizen since departing the White House on Jan. 20, 2021.”
Prosecutors said they requested Navarro’s indictment be sealed because they feared he was a flight risk:
“The events leading to the charges in the Indictment have been the subject of public scrutiny and concern.” Public disclosure of the indictment, they wrote, “would give the Defendant the opportunity to flee, tamper with witnesses or evidence, or take other steps to interfere with the criminal case.”
Navarro attempted to claim that he was unable to testify because Trump had declared that all former advisers were still covered by executive privilege, but courts have repeatedly ruled such privilege no longer applies once a president leaves office.
Navarro said executive privilege prevented him from talking to the committee, and that he would only do so if Trump gave him the green light to do so. The Jan. 6 committee has noted that Navarro has publicly boasted about his plans to upend the election results and that he published a book last year in which he referred to the plan as the “Green Bay Sweep.” Navarro also said publicly that Trump was “on board with the strategy.”
Navarro is the second former Trump administration official to be indicted for contempt of Congress. Steve Bannon was charged in November of last year for refusing to obey a lawful subpoena.