By Zachary Stieber
Contributing Writer
A former government official was charged with illegally conspiring to destroy records, the Department of Justice announced on Tuesday.
A grand jury indicted Dr. David Morens, who was a senior adviser to Dr. Anthony Fauci from 2006 through 2022, when Fauci was head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The institute is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Morens, 78, conspired with others to destroy and conceal records from Freedom of Information Act requests, including an individual who was not identified by name but matches Dr. Peter Daszak, who helped funnel government money to the high-level laboratory in the Chinese city where COVID-19 first appeared, according to the indictment, which was unsealed on Monday.
In one email on April 25, 2020, after learning that the NIH grant to the laboratory had been canceled, Morens allegedly wrote to Daszak that he was using his Gmail address rather than a government account, saying, “There are things I can’t say except [Fauci] is aware and I have learned that there are ongoing efforts within NIH to steer through this with minimal damage to you … and to NIH and NIAID,” according to the indictment.
In a separate missive about three weeks later, according to the indictment, Morens wrote to Daszak saying he had been told he could “cover” his “rear” by “deleting emails.”
In a third email in August 2020, Morens wrote to Daszak after learning that Daszak’s organization was awarded a $7.5 million grant. “Ahem … do I get a kickback????” Morens wrote, according to prosecutors.
Some of the emails were previously made public.
Morens passed along information he received from Daszak and others to Fauci, according to the indictment, and Daszak allegedly provided him with bottles of wine and promised him additional items of value.
“These allegations represent a profound abuse of trust at a time when the American people needed it most — during the height of a global pandemic,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.
“Circumventing records protocols with the intention of avoiding transparency is something that will not be tolerated by this FBI,” FBI Director Kash Patel added.
“Not only did Morens allegedly engage in the illegal obfuscation of his communications, but he received kickbacks for doing so. If you have engaged in activity conspiring against the United States, we will not stop until you face justice.”
Morens, who has acknowledged deleting emails but said he thought they were not federal records, does not have an attorney listed on the court docket. He appeared in court on Monday and was released.
The NIH did not return a request for comment by the time of publication. Morens is not listed as a current employee in the Health and Human Services directory.
Fauci, who has disavowed Morens, did not respond to a request for comment through his employer, Georgetown University.
A watchdog organization called Protect the Public’s Trust filed a complaint in 2024 with the government regarding Morens’ conduct.
“The conduct alleged in this indictment represent egregious violations of the public’s trust in its government, which is why we filed a complaint when the information first came out,” Michael Chamberlain, director of the group, wrote in an emailed statement on Tuesday.
“This behavior clearly violates the standards all public servants should adhere to and denies the American people their right to know what their government is doing. We hope this is the beginning of efforts to address the misconduct that appeared to be so rampant among public health officials during the pandemic.”
Morens faces up to 54 years in prison if convicted.
