Ex-Fauci Adviser Morens Indicted on Records Charges

David M. Morens, a former senior adviser to Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was indicted Tuesday in the District of Maryland on federal charges related to concealing government records during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Department of Justice charged the 78-year-old Morens 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. Prosecutors allege that Morens and two unnamed coconspirators conspired to evade Freedom of Information Act requests by conducting official business through Morens's personal Gmail account rather than his official NIH email. This occurred after the National Institutes of Health terminated a grant titled "Understanding the Risk of Bat Coronavirus Emergence," which NIAID had awarded to a U.S. company that subawarded funds to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.

According to the indictment, the group sought to assist one coconspirator in reinstating the grant and counter claims that COVID-19 originated from a laboratory incident at the institute. The allegations center on...