(WASHINGTON) — Rep. Jim Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat, told ABC News on Thursday that he is running for reelection, not announcing his retirement.
Clyburn, who took office in the House in 1993, is set to appear at South Carolina Democratic Party HQ in Columbia at 10:30 a.m. to make his campaign announcement.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(NEW YORK) — Oil prices surged and stocks tumbled worldwide in early trading on Thursday as Iran escalated shipping attacks in a critical tanker route.
Global crude spiked above $100 a barrel on Thursday before settling slightly below that key benchmark. The rise in oil prices defied a U.S. effort hours earlier to reassure markets with an announcement of the second-largest ever release from the nation’s petroleum reserve.
A selloff hit Wall Street as traders feared economic fallout from a potentially prolonged bout of elevated oil prices.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 550 points, or 1.1%, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.8%.
Oil markets are suffering a major supply shortage due to the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a trading route that facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of the global oil supply.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(FLORIDA) — Another giant reptile is clawing its way toward disrupting the South Florida ecosystem as an invasive species.
The Nile monitor — a semi-aquatic lizard equipped with razor claws that can grow up to 6 feet — has been establishing populations in the area since the 1980s, according to ecology experts.
Endemic to the Nile river delta in Sub-Saharan Africa, the continent’s largest lizards arrived in Florida via the pet trade, through both intentional and unintentional release, Frank Mazzotti, a professor of wildlife ecology at the University of Florida, told ABC News.
“They’re very wild, they’re very active,” Mazzotti said. “They don’t make good pets at all. They don’t calm down.”
The temperament of the giant lizards also makes them difficult to catch. Mazzotti described Nile monitors as “very strong” and “very aggressive.”
The reptiles will put up a fight and even bite humans who attempt to make contact with them, Mazzotti said.
“They’re crazy,” he said. “They’re very hard to handle, and you have to take great care that they don’t escape and that you don’t get bit.”
Monitor lizards are one of the high priority nonnative species for removal due to their potential impacts on native wildlife, Lisa Thompson, a communications specialist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Division of Habitat and Species Conservation, told ABC News via email.
Current management approaches focus on containing established populations and preventing the establishment of new populations, as well as recurring surveys and removals, Thompson noted.
Nile monitors are now established in Lee and Palm Beach Counties, with multiple sightings in Broward County as well. The FWC is also monitoring observations of the species in Miami-Dade County, according to Thompson.
The state’s humidity allows the Nile monitors to thrive, Mazzotti said.
“Their habitat requirements are met,” he said. “The climate’s a match.”
In addition, their diverse diet and ability to travel over land and in fresh and saltwater allows for potential establishment throughout Florida, especially in coastal areas with mangroves and salt marshes.
South Florida’s extensive canal system can provide ample corridor, and they have a high reproduction rate, according to the FWC.
The giant lizards are “generalist” feeders, meaning they aren’t picky about what they eat, Mazzotti said.
They have been observed to eat crabs, crayfish, mussels, snails, slugs, termites, caterpillars, beetles, spiders, grasshoppers and crickets, fish, frogs, toads, lizards, turtles, snakes, young crocodiles and other reptiles, birds and their eggs and small mammals, according to the FWC. They can hunt for prey on the surface, below ground and in trees.
Some researchers have even observed them eating iguana eggs, Mazzotti noted.
“They don’t care what they eat,” he said.
Due to their generalist diet, the invasive reptile could impact state and federally listed threatened species, including sea turtles, wading birds, gopher tortoises and the American crocodile, according to the FWC.
Biologists and ecologists are also concerned about burrowing owls, as their largest population also occurs where the largest known Nile monitor population also occurs.
Nile monitors are not protected in Florida, except by anti-cruelty laws, and can be humanely killed on private property with the landowner’s permission, according to the FWC.
It was added to Florida’s Prohibited Nonnative Species List in April 2021, which limits possession of Nile monitors for the purposes of research, educational exhibition, control or eradication.
Nile monitors are often olive green to black in color and have stripes on their jaw and head. They also have yellow-ish V-shaped stripes that begin at the base of its skull and neck and transform into “bands” along their back, according to the FWC.
They are often seen in or close to water and basking on rocks and branches, wildlife experts say.
The reptiles are usually active during the day and sleep on branches or submerged in water at night.
When temperatures drop, Nile monitors will retreat to burrows to keep warm, the FWC noted.
While they have not yet had demonstrated impacts on the ecosystem, it’s important to keep populations of Nile monitors under control before they disrupt an already delicate environment, Mazzotti said.
“You cannot wait until an invasive species has demonstrated its impact upon the ecosystem,” he said. “Because if you do, then it’s too late.”
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(STRAIT OF HORMUZ) — The conflict in the Strait of Hormuz intensified on Wednesday as the Iranian navy confirmed it targeted at least two of three ships struck by projectiles in the critical passage for the oil and shipping trades, and President Donald Trump said the U.S. military destroyed several “inactive” mine-laying boats in the strait.
The increased military activity in the Strait of Hormuz came just three days after President Donald Trump warned Iran in a post on his social media site that if it attempts to “stop the flow of Oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that its navy conducted strikes on two commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday morning.
An IRGC spokesperson said in a statement that its navy struck the ships Express Room and the Mayuree Naree because both commercial vessels were allegedly “ignoring alerts and warnings from the IRGC Navy.”
“Every vessel intending to pass must obtain permission from Iran,” IRGC naval commander Adm. Alireza Tangsiri said in a social media post on Wednesday.
The Express Room, a container ship sailing under the Liberian flag, was struck by Iranian projectiles after allegedly “ignoring warnings from the IRGC Navy and came to a halt in its position,” the IRGC spokesperson said.
The Thai-flagged container ship Mayuree Naree was targeted for allegedly “ignoring alerts and warnings from the IRGC Navy and unlawfully insisting on transiting the Strait of Hormuz, according to the IRGC spokesperson.
Thai officials reported that three crew members were missing from the vessel following the attack.
“The Strait of Hormuz is, without a doubt and without a moment’s neglect, under the intelligent management of the brave naval forces of the IRGC. American aggressors and their allies have no right of passage,” the Iranian spokesperson said.
Earlier Wednesday, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Center (UKMTO) said it had received reports that three ships came under attack in the Strait of Hormuz. It did not identify the vessels, nor did it say at the time who was responsible for the attacks.
The UKMTO said one container ship was struck about 11 nautical miles north of Oman, in the passage that connects the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
“The vessel has requested assistance and the crew are evacuated,” the UKMTO said.
The other two container ships, according to the UKMTO, were also struck by projectiles early Wednesday. One was hit about 25 nautical miles northwest of the United Arab Emirates port city of Ras Al Khaimah, while the other was stuck northwest of Dubai, according to the UKMTO.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) released videos overnight showing attacks being carried out on Tuesday on what it described as “multiple Iranian naval vessels, March 10, including 16 minelayers near the Strait of Hormuz.”
“To date, we have struck more than 5,500 targets inside Iran, including more than 60 ships, using a variety of precision weapons systems,” CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said in a video post Wednesday.
While taking questions from reporters on Wednesday on the South Lawn of the White House before heading to an event in Kentucky, Trump said, “Look, we took out just about all of their mine ships in one night.”
“We’ve knocked out their navy. We’ve knocked out their air force. We’ve knocked out all of their air defense,” Trump also said.
When asked by a reporter if he’s encouraging CEOs of various oil companies to use the Strait of Hormuz, Trump responded, “Yeah, I think they should. I think they should use the Strait.”
Asked if there are any mines laid in the Strait of Hormuz, the president said, “We don’t think so.”
In a social media post on Tuesday, Trump said, “If Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing so, we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY!”
“If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the Military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before,” Trump said in the post.
CENTCOM issued a warning to Iranian civilians on Wednesday to avoid all port facilities where it said Iranian naval forces are carrying out military operations along the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM said Iranian dockworkers, administrative personnel and crews of commercial vessels “should avoid Iranian naval vessels and military equipment.
“The Iranian regime is using civilian ports along the Strait of Hormuz to conduct military operations that threaten international shipping. This dangerous action risks the lives of innocent people,” CENTCOM said in its warning.
A spokesperson for Iran’s armed forces said Wednesday that if Iran’s ports are threatened, “all ports and docks in the region will be our legitimate targets.”
In an interview with the Iranian state television, Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi denied claims that the country’s naval forces are hiding in economic ports, and threatened heavier operations if Iran’s ports are targeted.
The chaos unfolding across the global economy stems in large part from the narrow but crucial waterway along the southern coast of Iran, which connects the Gulf of Oman to the Persian Gulf.
The Strait of Hormuz facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of the global supply of crude oil and liquid natural gas. Those products hold major implications for the prices of gasoline, plastics and European electricity, among a host of other goods.
The passage, which at its narrowest point is just 21 miles wide, is the only shipping route that stretches from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, making it a key travel hub for goods originating in oil-rich Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran.
Wednesday morning, the International Energy Agency said it would release 400 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserve, marking the largest oil release in the group’s history as the global economy grapples with soaring oil prices in the wake of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, and traders fear a prolonged blockade of the maritime passage.
Before the war, roughly 20 million barrels of oil passed through the Strait or Hormuz each day, but tanker traffic has now “all but stopped,” Fatih Birol, executive director of the IEA, said at a press conference on Wednesday.
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(PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla.) — Christy Luna disappeared without a trace over 40 years ago at the age of 8. Now, authorities in Florida say they have identified a new person of interest in the cold case.
Christy went missing on May 27, 1984, while going to a general store less than two blocks from her home in Greenacres to buy cat food, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. No one knows what happened to her after she bought the food for her two cats, and a massive search at the time didn’t turn up anything.
The sheriff’s office has followed multiple leads over the decades since and has named several persons of interest in the case, but no one has been charged in connection with her disappearance.
On Wednesday, authorities announced they are looking for information on a new person of interest — Warren Gilbert Williams Jr., a convicted child sex offender who died in 2016.
Sgt. Chris Karpinski, with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office’s cold case unit, said they received an anonymous tip last year that Williams was remodeling a home near the general store the day Christy went missing.
“He left that home and his remodeling efforts to go buy cigarettes at Belks General Store and he never returned,” Karpinski said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
“That alone, interesting information, but we have a lot of that information through the years where somebody was seen in the area, and this and that,” he continued.
But Williams, he said, has a “peculiar past of sexual activity with children.” He was convicted of sexual battery on a child under 12 and lewd and lascivious molestation and was imprisoned in Florida from 2007 to 2013, according to Karpinski. After finishing that sentence, he went to prison in Alabama, where he was wanted for sexual abuse of a child, Karpinski said.
“The suspicion existed through this circle of people that Mr. Williams knew through the years, and they had discussed the possibility of him being involved with Christy’s disappearance,” Karpinski said.
Detectives also learned through the anonymous tip that Williams, who lived in what is now known as Lake Worth Beach at the time, installed a concrete pad in his backyard a week after Christy went missing.
Authorities got permission from the current homeowners to search the property and last month excavated the yard, Karpinski said.
“Unfortunately, we found nothing,” Karpinski said, saying there were “mixed emotions” on the development.
“We wanted to find something, but yet, finding something meant that, you know, we had bad news, at least it was for me,” he said. “So there is still hope that Christy either is out there or somebody is out there that knows where she is, whether she is still with us on Earth or has passed.”
Karpinski said there currently is no physical or testimonial evidence that links Williams to Christy’s disappearance.
“We want to learn more about him,” Karpinski said. “I know it’s a long time ago. People, friends, neighbors, witnesses that day who think maybe they saw him, please come forward.”
Williams, who was 46 years old at the time Christy disappeared, died in prison in 2016, according to Karpinski.
Authorities haven’t ruled out any other persons of interest named in the case, according to investigator Bill Springer, who has been investigating Christy’s disappearance since the sheriff’s office assumed the case in 1984.
Springer also urged anyone with information to come forward, even after all this time.
“I want people to come forward. I’m not going to question why you didn’t come forward, because I don’t care,” he said. “My job is to find Christy, not to judge people because they didn’t come forward.”
“So if you’ve got information and you’ve been sitting on it for 30 years, 40 years, I don’t care,” he said. “Bring it out and we’ll look at it, see what we can do with it.”
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(WASHINGTON) — The FBI warned police departments in California in recent days that Iran could retaliate for American attacks by launching drones at the West Coast, according to an alert reviewed by ABC News.
“We recently acquired information that as of early February 2026, Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United State Homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event that the US conducted strikes against Iran,” according to the alert distributed at the end of February. “We have no additional information on the timing, method, target, or perpetrators of this alleged attack.”
The warning came just as the Trump administration launched its ongoing assault against the Islamic Republic. Iran has been retaliating with drone strikes against targets throughout the Mideast.
A spokeswoman for the FBI office in LA declined to comment.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
U.S. intelligence officials have also grown concerned in recent months about the expanding use of drones by Mexican drug cartels and the chance the technology could be used to attack American forces and personnel near the Mexican border.
“An uncorroborated report suggested that unidentified Mexican cartel leaders had authorized attacks using UAS (drones) carrying explosives against US law enforcement and US military personnel along the US-Mexico border,” according to a September 2025 bulletin reviewed by ABC News. “This type of attack against US personnel or interests inside the United States would be unprecedented but exemplifies a plausible scenario, although (cartels) typically avoid actions that would result in unwanted attention or responses from US authorities.”
ABC News contributor John Cohen, the former head of intelligence for the Department of Homeland Security, said he is concerned about the possibility of drone warfare coming from both the Pacific and Mexico.
“We know Iran has an extensive presence in Mexico and South America, they have relationships, they have the drones and now they have the incentive to conduct attacks,” Cohen said. “The FBI is smart for putting this warning out so that state and locals can be better able to prepare and respond to these types of threats. Information like this is critically important for law enforcement.”
While the FBI’s warning did not specify how or when vessels carrying attack drones could get close enough to the U.S. mainland, intelligence officials have long been concerned about equipment being pre-positioned – either on land or on ships at sea — in the event Israel or the U.S. struck Iran.
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(WASHINGTON) — Authorities on Monday began searching a sprawling ranch in New Mexico formerly owned by the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, renewing questions about the steps taken by the U.S. Department of Justice nearly a decade ago.
While the New Mexico Department of Justice has released few details about the new investigation, here is what we know about the ranch and what prompted the renewed scrutiny:
Did the Department of Justice ever search the ranch?
When Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges, the investigation into his alleged illicit activity swept across many of his opulent properties. However, investigators apparently never searched his New Mexico ranch, formerly known as “Zorro Ranch,” according to emails released by the U.S. DOJ earlier this year.
When Epstein was found dead by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019, investigators’ scope broadened, but authorities appear to have never returned to raid the property for potential evidence.
While New Mexico initiated its own investigation into the property, the probe was paused in 2019 at the request of the U.S. DOJ, according to New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez.
What prompted state authorities to re-open their investigation?
In a statement issued last month, the New Mexico DOJ said the investigation was re-opened because “revelations outlined in the previously sealed FBI files warrant further examination.”
The statement did not provide further details about the “revelations,” and state Attorney General Torrez has not publicly commented on which files prompted the investigation. The New Mexico DOJ has not responded to inquiries from ABC News about the scope of the investigation.
However, approximately a week before the New Mexico DOJ opened their investigation, the office received a request from the New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands to investigate an unsubstantiated allegation included in files released by the U.S. DOJ that two bodies were buried in the hills around the ranch.
“On behalf of the New Mexico State Land Office, I am requesting that both the U.S. Department of Justice and the New Mexico Department of Justice thoroughly investigate this disturbing allegation,” New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard said on Feb. 10 in a letter obtained by ABC News.
According to documents released by the U.S. DOJ, a local radio host received an email in November 2019 from an anonymous individual who claimed to have worked at the ranch and alleged that two “foreign girls” were buried on the grounds of the ranch after being strangulated.
The radio host told the FBI that he originally received a demand for one bitcoin in exchange for the location of the bodies and seven videos of sexual abuse.
According to an FBI report memorializing the tip, the host promptly shared the information with the FBI. The report suggested that the tip was received by the FBI and that the radio host spoke with investigators, though it does not appear the claim was investigated further, in part because the email account that sent the tip was deactivated.
The report and materials released by the U.S. DOJ did not include any evidence to corroborate the claims beyond the initial email. The documents and concern from the New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands appear to be part of the reason investigators have re-opened the investigation.
Who owns the ranch now?
Zorro Ranch was sold in 2023 to Texas businessman and politician Don Huffines, who is currently the Republican nominee for Texas’s state comptroller. He was endorsed by President Donald Trump in an upset victory against the incumbent.
In a post on social media, Huffines explained that he was aware of the history of the property when he purchased it in 2023 and that “at the time of the sale, it was marketed that the proceeds would go to the victims.”
He said in the post that he has renamed the ranch “San Rafael” and intends to “to remake it as a Christian retreat, reclaiming it for Jesus.”
The New Mexico DOJ this week said it “appreciates the cooperation of the current property owners in granting access for the search and extends its thanks to the ranch staff for their professionalism.”
It is unclear if the New Mexico DOJ obtained a search warrant for the property or is just operating with the consent of the property owner.
What is the goal of the investigation?
The investigation comes as New Mexico lawmakers are seeking to better understand how Epstein was able to avoid legal scrutiny for years. Last month, the New Mexico House voted unanimously to create an Epstein “Truth Commission” to better understand Epstein’s activities in the state. The commission has subpoena power and a budget of $2 million to carry out its investigation.
In a column last week, Attorney General Torres acknowledged that the state’s investigation faces obstacles but vowed to issue a public report about his findings.
“Epstein has been dead for years. Zorro Ranch has changed ownership. Physical evidence may no longer exist, and the statute of limitations has likely run on many potential offenses. These are real obstacles, and survivors deserve to hear them stated plainly. But we will follow the evidence wherever it leads and leave no credible question unexplored,” Torres said.
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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump is traveling to Hebron, Kentucky, on Wednesday to deliver another speech focused on economic messaging. But this time, it’s in the district of Rep. Thomas Massie, the six-term Republican that the president is actively working to oust.
Just two months ahead of a contentious Republican primary between Massie and Trump-endorsed former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, the president is set to make two stops in the area: at a packaging facility in Hebron, Kentucky, and then at ThermoFisher in Reading, Ohio, where he’ll discuss efforts to lower prescription drug prices.
The visit comes amid an ongoing, bitter feud between Massie and Gallrein — one of the party’s few significant MAGA proxy battles this year. The race is also one of the most expensive House GOP primaries of the 2026 cycle.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier this week that Trump will be joined by Ohio and Kentucky lawmakers “who he greatly admires and respects and supports.” Massie won’t be at any of Wednesday’s events alongside Trump; a Gallrein spokesperson confirmed to ABC News that he will be in attendance for the president’s event.
Massie has long been the subject of Trump’s ire, but it has ramped up this cycle with Massie’s unwavering push for the release of the files about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as well as his opposition to significant legislation championed by the president, including his chief domestic policy package.
Last week, Massie was one of two Republicans to buck party leadership and vote in favor of the Iran war powers resolution, which attempts to curtail military action.
In October, Trump said Massie needed to be “thrown out of office,” after the congressman objected to a short-term funding bill backed by the president– also saying, “[Massie] SHOULD BE PRIMARIED, and I will lead the charge against him.”
Trump then nudged Gallrein to enter the race, backed him, and the fifth-generation farmer launched his bid that month.
In a social media post on Monday, Gallrein said the “rally will be a huge moment for our campaign and for the people of Northern Kentucky.” Gallrein wrote Monday on X.
In an interview with ABC affiliate WCPO about the president’s visit and his race against Gallrein, Massie said he’s glad Trump is visiting the district and “paying attention to local issues.”
“I suspect he’s also going to try and help my opponent, but you know that’s really all my opponent has going for him. He’s promised to be a rubber stamp when he gets to Washington, D.C., and I don’t think people here want a rubber stamp.”
Massie told WCPO he will not make Trump’s visit due to prior commitments.
Massie also said the president would “discover” support for the positions he champions, including a focus on releasing the Epstein files and staying out of foreign wars.
“What they’ll discover is Trump fans in KY-4 and across the entire commonwealth also support my work on the Epstein files, reigning in spending, ending forever wars, draining the swamp, and food freedom!” Massie said in a social media post on Tuesday regarding the president’s upcoming visit to his district.
Ahead of his visit, Trump attacked Massie on his social media platform, saying, “I predict that ‘Representative’Thomas Massie will go down as the WORST Republican Congressman in the long and fabled history of the United States Congress.”
“Massie, who is running against a great American Patriot in the Kentucky Primary, will hopefully lose BIG,” added Trump, who reiterated his endorsement of Gallrein in another post.
The president’s rhetoric toward Massie is not new — in 2020, Trump called on the GOP to “throw Massie out of Republican party” following the congressman’s opposition to a coronavirus relief bill. Still, Massie won his primary by 62 points. In 2022, Trump endorsed Massie for reelection, calling him a “conservative warrior.” Massie won by nearly 60 points that year.
But with Massie on the outs with Trump once again, Kentucky’s primary election — which will take place on May 19 — is expected to remain contentious.
On Tuesday, Massie attempted to paint his opponent as the “Trump traitor,” claiming Gallrein dropped his Republican affiliation after Trump became the party’s presidential nominee in 2016.
“Woke Eddie Gallrein abandoned President Trump’s Republican party – a complete dereliction of his MAGA duty,” the narrator of a recent Massie ad says.
Gallrein spokeswoman Alexandra Wilkes acknowledged that Gallrein changed his voter registration in the past, but pinned the blame on Massie for this decision.
“Ed briefly changed registration out of frustration with the broken system Congressman Massie created in his district, which hurt the Republican Party, and he is proud to stand with President Trump and true conservative Republicans,” Wilkes said in a statement, slamming Massie for “pretending to be a Trump ally.”
Gallrein is also supported by Kentucky Rep. Andy Barr, who is also running for Senate, to replace outgoing Sen. Mitch McConnell. Barr’s decision to endorse against Massie was significant, given that Massie is a part of his delegation. Trump has not yet endorsed in the Kentucky Senate race, and Barr is among the top three GOP candidates working for his endorsement.
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(WASHINGTON) — Two congressional Democrats are calling on the Justice Department’s internal watchdog to launch a probe into what they characterized as a “troubling pattern” of favorable outcomes for clients who hired defense attorney Brad Bondi, the brother of Attorney General Pam Bondi, for representation in cases involving the Justice Department.
The lawmakers, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Rep. Dave Min, D-Calif., penned a letter Wednesday asking the DOJ’s inspector general to review “whether Attorney General Pamela Bondi properly recused herself from, or otherwise improperly influenced, several cases involving defendants represented by her brother.”
“We are concerned that DOJ officials, including the Attorney General, may have failed to ensure the independence of internal accountability mechanisms,” the lawmakers wrote.
Brad Bondi, a defense lawyer with the firm Paul Hastings, has secured several voluntary dismissals and settlements since his sister took the helm at the DOJ. In a LinkedIn post cited in the Democrats’ letter, Brad Bondi promoted a litany of “remarkable victories” on behalf of clients in 2025.
As ABC News previously reported, Brad Bondi successfully persuaded federal prosecutors to drop charges against Carolina Amesty, a former Florida state legislator, who faced two counts of theft of government property related to COVID relief fraud.
Weeks later, the Justice Department abruptly withdrew its case against another of Brad Bondi’s clients: Sid Chakraverty, a property developer who faced felony wire fraud charges in Missouri.
Amesty and Chakraverty denied any wrongdoing with respect to their cases at the time.
The DOJ told ABC News at the time that Attorney General Bondi had “no role” in either case, and that the decisions to drop those charges were “made through proper channels.”
Most recently, Brad Bondi was retained by an individual negotiating a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over civil fraud charges brought last September.
SEC regulators accused Brad Bondi’s client, Alexander Mehr, and another person of running a Ponzi scheme — misleading investors to the tune of more than $112 million as part of a plan to turn well-known retailers, including Pier 1 Imports and RadioShack, into thriving e-commerce businesses. The SEC also accused the two men of using more than $16 million in investor funds for personal use.
In October 2025, the SEC paused the case citing the government shutdown and noted ongoing settlement talks. Regulators said as recently as last month that the parties remain engaged in settlement negotiations. Neither Mehr nor the other defendant have publicly commented on the case.
DOJ spokesman Gates McGavick reiterated in a statement to ABC News on Wednesday, “These decisions were made through the proper channels, and the Attorney General had no role in them.”
A representative for Brad Bondi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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(NEW YORK) — The International Energy Agency on Wednesday said it would release 400 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserve, marking the largest oil release in the group’s history as the global economy grapples with fallout from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
Oil prices soared after the outbreak of war as traders feared a prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a trading route that facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of the global oil supply.
Before the war, roughly 20 million barrels of oil passed through the strait each day, but tanker traffic has now “all but stopped,” Faithe Birol, executive director of the IEA, said at a press conference on Wednesday.
“The conflict in the Middle East is having significant impacts on global oil and gas markets with major implications for energy security, energy affordability and the global economy,” added Birol, whose organization counts 32 member nations, including the U.S.
The release from the IEA’s oil reserve on Wednesday would make up for the lost oil flow for roughly 20 days. Taken together, IEA member countries retained about 1.2 billion barrels of reserve oil prior to the latest release, the group previously said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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