DOJ Dropped Bribery Investigation Into Trump's Border Czar Despite FBI Recording: Report

President Donald Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, was recorded accepting a $50,000 cash payment from undercover FBI agents in a 2024 sting operation, but the Justice Department ultimately shut down the bribery investigation, according to people familiar with the case, a new piece by The New York Times has revealed.

The operation stemmed from a separate counterintelligence probe in which a target suggested Homan was taking bribes in exchange for future immigration-related government contracts. Undercover agents later met with Homan in September 2024 and captured him on tape allegedly agreeing to help secure contracts for the agents—posing as businessmen—if Trump returned to office. The money was delivered in a bag from the restaurant chain Cava, the sources said.

Despite the recording, Justice Department officials closed the case after Trump reassumed office in January, NYT reveals. Furthermore, FBI Director Kash Patel ordered the investigation shut over the summer, one source told Reuters, with officials citing insufficient evidence to prove that Homan committed a chargeable offense, noting he was not in government at the time of the payment.

"This matter originated under the previous administration and was subjected to a full review by FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors," said Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a joint statement shared with Reuters. "They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing. The Department's resources must remain focused on real threats to the American people, not baseless investigations."

A grand jury probe in the Western District of Texas had only just begun when Trump returned to the White House. Former Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, now a federal judge, expressed skepticism about the case in early briefings, reportedly calling it an example of a "deep state" operation.

The White House defended Homan, who previously led Immigration and Customs Enforcement and now oversees the administration's deportation campaign. "He is a career law enforcement officer and lifelong public servant who is doing a phenomenal job on behalf of President Trump and the country," deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson said in a statement shared with Reuters.