The veteran federal prosecutor resigns on the frost order of Trump banks named

Washington – A longtime federal prosecutor resigned on Tuesday rather than carrying out what she described as orders of officials appointed by Trump to take measures not supported by evidence, according to a copy of his letter of resignation obtained by NBC News.

Denise Cheung, who had been at the Ministry of Justice for over 24 years and was at the head of the Criminal Division of the US Prosecutor’s Office for the Columbia District, wrote in her letter of resignation to the prosecutor between the United States , Ed Martin, whom she had “always wanted to offer solid and ethical advice” to her bosses in several administrations, and that he had been asked to take action and application of the Law despite what she called the lack of “sufficient evidence”.

Cheung wrote on Monday to review the documents provided by the Office of the Deputy Prosecutor General (ODAG) – Currently managed by the assistant prosecutor General Emil Bove – “To open a criminal investigation on the question of whether a contract had been illegally awarded by an executive agency “during the administration of former president Joe Biden.

His letter did not specify the subsidies in question, but three sources told NBC News that it had to do with the environmental subsidies issued during the Biden administration.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice said that “refusing a basic request to suspend an investigation so that officials can examine the potential waste of public funds is not an act of heroism – just a failure to follow the Chain of command “.

The new resignation comes in the midst of a period of unrest within the Ministry of Justice. More recently, seven prosecutors have chosen to resign rather than to follow the orders to abandon the case against the mayor of New York, Eric Adams, a decision that many have described in letters as inappropriate and politically motivated. In the DCUS lawyer’s office, Martin – who pushed the theories of the conspiracy of the elections not founded after the 2020 vote and was then defender of the defendants of January 6 – dissolved the unit investigating and pursuing the rioters of Capitol and launched an examination of their work.

Cheung wrote that he had been told that the question “was sensitive to time and that measures were to be taken that day because the contractual scholarships could continue to shoot accounts managed by the bank managing disbursements”.

Cheung wrote that she had given other people in the office on Monday, a federal holiday, to find out if there was a base to open a great jury investigation. She assessed that “existing documents on their face did not seem to reach this threshold,” she wrote in her letter. But “a representative of Odag said that he believed that sufficient predictions existed” for the investigation, she continued.

Cheung wrote that he was then told that the representative of the Odag would work directly with a federal prosecutor and “bypass” the office of the lawyer of the DCUS, before being informed that a “freezing letter” asking To a frost from the “certain assets” bank would be adequate at this stage, as opposed to other legal processes. “”

Cheung wrote that she had contacted a supervisor at the Washington FBI field office, and others have discussed “which, if necessary, possible criminal charges could be applicable, as well as the sufficiency of the evidence “.

Cheung wrote that she had sent an editorial letter of gel provided by the FBI Washington Field Office (WFO) and that Odag had provided a language suggesting that there was a probable cause to grasp the assets, but Cheung said that the language “was not appropriate” for the question at hand.

“Despite a certain concern about the current lack of evidence of any apparent crime and the need to send such a letter of frost, FBI-WFO staff were able to consult the necessary people, including a legal advisor, in their office” , wrote Cheung. “I was told that if the FBI-WFO did not want to send such a gel letter, you would run someone from USAO-DC to send such a correspondence to the bank.”

While the Washington field office of the FBI “determined that they were ready to send the gel letter,” wrote Cheung, the office asked Cheung to send an email indicating that there were possible evidence of potential criminal violations. Cheung wrote in an email at the FBI that the most it would be willing to say was that “could be a conduct which constitutes potential violations” of two laws, conspiracy to defraud the United States and fraud by thread, which “deserves an additional investigation.”

After the FBI field office sent his letter to the bank by recommending a 30 -day freeze, Cheung wrote that she had received a call from Martin and one of her best employees.

“You have expressed dissatisfaction with the adequacy of the FBI-WFO letter and criticized that the” recommended “language that accounts freezing,” wrote Cheung in his letter. “You also ordered that a second letter is immediately given to the bank under your and my name ordering that the bank does not disclose any funds in matters in accordance with the criminal investigation short of USAO-DC. When J I explained that the quantum of evidence did not support this action, you said you believe that there was enough evidence.

“You also accused me of losing five hours of the day of doing nothing, except by trying to get what the FBI and I wanted, but not what you wanted,” continued Cheung. “As I shared with you, at this stage, on the basis of the evidence that I have examined, I still do not think that there is sufficient evidence to issue the letter you have described, including evidence Sufficient to indicate to the bank that there is a likely cause to enter the specific accounts have identified.

“I remain attached to the oath I have lent, and it is the honor of a life to be an ausa in this office,” wrote Cheung, using an acronym for the assistant lawyer of the United States . “I know that all the ausas in the office will continue to maintain this commitment that they made, following the facts and the law and to comply with their moral, ethical and legal obligations.”

Trump announced on Monday that he would seek to install Martin as a permanent American lawyer for the Columbia district. Martin, who was still listed as a defense lawyer for defendants from January 6 until the beginning of the month, is an American lawyer for Washington since the day of the inauguration, when Trump has forgiven condemned rioters, including some of the Martin customers.

Trump’s announcement occurred less than 72 hours after Martin’s announcement on X – the platform known as Twitter before its bought by billionaire Elon Musk – which he would investigate the former special Jack lawyer Smith for pro bono legal aid he received from a private law firm.

Martin, in a speech outside the Capitol on the eve of the January 6 attack, called “the real unconditional Americans” to work to their “last breath” to “stop the flight”.

Neither Martin nor the American lawyer’s office for the Columbia district immediately responded to a request for comments from NBC News.