Dr. David Morens, a former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) employee and top advisor to the agency's former head Dr. Anthony Fauci, was indicted on Tuesday for attempting to evade Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests in connection with COVID-19 research grants.

The criminal charges come after Dr. Morens was caught allegedly trying to cover up the origins of COVID, specifically hiding evidence showing the virus leaked from the infamous lab in Wuhan, China.

The 78-year-old Maryland resident is being charged with "conspiracy against the United States; destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations; concealment, removal, or mutilation of records; and aiding and abetting."

According to the DOJ, an unnamed co-conspirator rewarded Morens with wine and fancy dinners in exchange for the doctor getting a prominent medical journal to push the theory that COVID originated naturally, countering the lab-leak theory.

Dr. Morens also testified before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic in 2024, admitting he used a private email account and "backchannels" to help Fauci and the EcoHealth Alliance dodge Freedom of Information Act requests.

The doctor also allegedly helped his friend Dr. Peter Daszak's EcoHealth Alliance get its government funding reinstated.

The Brownstone Institute wrote in 2024, "Daszak admitted to working with Morens to reinstate federal funding for EcoHealth. Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA.) asked Daszak, 'Were you aware that Dr. David Morens was communicating with you on his personal Gmail account to avoid FOIA and public accountability?' Daszak responded that these communications were just related to 'personal matters.' Rep. McCormick followed up, 'Personal matters about reinstating a public grant.' Daszak argued that the conversations were about 'personal and security issues' rather than 'political security issues' because he only asked for 'advice as a friend and colleague.' But Morens was not a colleague; he was part of the apparatus that funded Daszak's enterprise through taxpayer money."

"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 this week. "As alleged in the indictment, Dr. Morens and his co-conspirators deliberately concealed information and falsified records in an effort to suppress alternative theories regarding the origins of COVID-19. Government officials have a solemn duty to provide honest, well-grounded facts and advice in service of the public interest — not to advance their own personal or ideological agendas."