WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is conducting a criminal investigation into former Gov.Andrew Cuomo, a leading contender in the New York City mayoral race, overtestimony he gave to Congresslast year, according to a person familiar with the matter. House Republicans had requested a federal investigation into Cuomo, arguing the New York Democrat lied to the House Oversight Committee in 2024 when he said he had not been involved in reviewing a report from the New York Department of Health about the state's handling of the coronavirus pandemic from when he was governor. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment Tuesday night. The New York Timesfirst reportedon the investigation. Cuomo's mayoral campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Follow live politics coverage here The probe was launched by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia before Ed Martin was replaced as interim attorney by former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, according to the person familiar with the matter. Martin, who revealed on his last day in office that he isfacing an investigation by D.C.'s Office of Disciplinary Counsel, said last week that he planned to"shame" people who the Justice Department didn't charge with crimes— a major departure from DOJ protocol. Early in Trump's second term,several Justice Department officials resignedover the handling of a federal case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who is now seeking re-election as an independent. Trump administration officials wanted the corruption case against Adams dropped after he began cooperating with the Trump administration on immigration enforcement. Then-Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said the criminal investigation was hampering Adams' ability to tackle "illegal immigration and violent crime." A federal judge last monthpermanently dismissed the chargesagainst Adams, saying potential future charges couldn't be used as "leverage" over him.
