By The Justice Department has indicted David Morens, a longtime senior scientific adviser to Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, alleging he participated in a scheme to evade Freedom of Information Act requests tied to COVID-19 research grants.
According to a report by New York Post Washington bureau chief Josh Christenson, prosecutors accuse Morens of conspiring to bypass public records laws by using personal email accounts and deleting federal records related to pandemic-era communications, including those involving EcoHealth Alliance and grant funding decisions.
Morens served for decades as a senior aide to Fauci at the agency. Congressional investigators, including the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic and Sen. Rand Paul, previously obtained emails in which Morens discussed methods to avoid FOIA scrutiny.
In one February 2021 message, Morens wrote: “I learned from our foia lady here how to make emails disappear after i am foia’d but before the search starts, so i think we are all safe.” He also advised colleagues to use his personal account, stating he tried to “always communicate on gmail because my NIH email is FOIA’d constantly.”
Subpoenaed records cited by investigators showed Morens deleting correspondence with EcoHealth Alliance president Peter Daszak, whose organization received National Institutes of Health funding for research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Lawmakers alleged the deletions were intended to shield discussions related to pandemic origins and grant oversight from public and congressional review.
In May 2024, the House subcommittee released a memo outlining allegations that Morens may have unlawfully destroyed federal records in potential violation of 18 U.S.C. 2071, improperly used personal email for official business, and engaged in conduct unbecoming of a federal employee. Paul later referred the matter to the Justice Department for investigation.
Investigative journalist Paul Thacker, who has reported extensively on Morens, has previously highlighted the adviser’s role in managing sensitive communications tied to COVID-19 research and funding.
The indictment marks a new phase in years of congressional scrutiny over government transparency during the pandemic, including hearings in which Morens testified about his email practices. Specific charges, including whether prosecutors have filed conspiracy counts or named additional defendants, were not immediately detailed in early reporting.
Morens, who has been on administrative leave, has not publicly commented on the indictment. He has been ordered to “avoid all contact” with the co-conspirators. The case is expected to intensify ongoing disputes over federal record-keeping, accountability within public health agencies, and transparency in high-stakes scientific decision-making during the COVID-19 response.
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