A CIA whistleblower who testified under subpoena that Dr. Anthony Fauci led a multi-agency cover-up of evidence that COVID-19 leaked from a lab is afraid the agency will retaliate against him, his attorney told The Defender today.
James E. Erdman III, a CIA senior operations officer, testified Wednesday that “Dr. Fauci’s role in the cover-up was intentional” and resulted in the Biden administration releasing an August 2021 report that was inconclusive about the virus’s origins — even though intelligence agencies by then had evidence of a lab leak.
Erdman’s attorney, Carol Thompson, told The Defender that Erdman is “concerned that the CIA will use bureaucratic processes and alleged secrecy requirements to undermine his testimony and obfuscate the truth.”
Thompson’s comments echo those she made to reporters after Wednesday’s hearing, in the presence of Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who convened the hearing as part of his ongoing investigation into COVID-19’s origins.
Paul told reporters his team is continuing its review of evidence — and that more conflict-of-interest revelations are coming “next week.”
He also addressed the May 11 deadline to indict Fauci for perjury for allegedly lying to Congress, saying that Fauci may still face indictment.
In May 2021, Fauci told Congress the National Institutes of Health and the agency he led, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), never funded gain-of-function research. The five-year statute of limitations for indicting Fauci for his May 2021 testimony expired on Monday.
However, Fauci provided similar testimony in July 2021 — the deadline for indicting him for lies told during that testimony is July 2026.
“There are a lot of questions and I’ve sent several criminal referrals … on Anthony Fauci, and I hope they will be pursued,” Paul said.
Hellbound and Down 