Trump aide Navarro indicted for defying January 6 panel

Former White House trade adviser Peter Navarro refused to appear for a deposition before the committee investigating the events of January 6 and failed to produce related documents. AP

Peter Navarro, former trade adviser to president Donald Trump, has been indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress for his failure to comply with a subpoena from the House of Representatives committee investigating the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, the Justice Department said on Friday.

A federal grand jury charged Mr Navarro with one count involving his refusal to appear for a deposition before the committee and another count for his refusal to produce documents, the department said.

Mr Navarro was due to make an initial appearance on Friday afternoon in US District Court for the District of Columbia.

In its subpoena, the committee said it had reason to believe that Mr Navarro had information relevant to its investigation, the department said.

Each count of contempt of Congress carries a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of one year in jail, as well as a fine of up to $100,000.

The indictment underscores that the Justice Department is continuing to pursue criminal charges against Trump associates who have attempted to impede or stonewall the work of congressional investigators examining the January 6 insurrection.

Mr Navarro made the case in his lawsuit on Tuesday that the committee investigating the attack is unlawful and therefore a subpoena it issued to him in February is unenforceable under law.

He filed the suit against members of the committee, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the US attorney in Washington, Matthew Graves, whose office is now handling the criminal case against him.

Fellow Trump adviser Dan Scavino was found in contempt of Congress in April, but Mr Scavino has not been charged by the Justice Department at this point.

The committee has also pressed contempt of Congress action against one-time Trump adviser Steve Bannon and Mr Trump’s last White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows. Mr Bannon was indicted last year and his case is pending.

News agencies contributed to this report