Ex-FBI Official Set to Plead Guilty to Illegally Working for Russian Oligarch | CPT PPP Coverage

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A former senior FBI counterintelligence agent is attempting to negotiate a plea deal over charges of violating economic sanctions and money laundering related to his work for Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. 

In January, the Department of Justice brought two simultaneous cases against Charles McGonigal, who served as the head of counterintelligence at the FBI’s New York City field office before his 2018 retirement. 

The first case, filed in New York, relates to his relationship with Deripaska, and a second in Washington, D.C., regards his collection of $225,000 in unreported payments from a former Albanian intelligence officer. McGonigal initially pleaded not guilty to both sets of charges — but that may change.

On Monday, Manhattan Federal Judge Jennifer Rearden wrote in a briefing that “the court has been informed that defendant Charles McGonigal may wish to enter a change of plea.” 

Last week, McGonigal’s attorney, Seth DuCharme, stated that there was a “decent chance the [Washington, D.C.] case is going to be resolved” without the need for a jury trial. 

Authorities allege that McGonigal “acted on behalf of Deripaska and fraudulently used a U.S. entity to obscure their activity in violation of U.S. sanctions.” Deripaska himself was indicted by the Justice Department in 2022 for violating sanctions imposed on him following allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election. McGonigal is accused of having aided Deripaska in investigating “a rival Russian oligarch in return for concealed payments.”

As an FBI official, McGonigal participated in investigations related to Russian interference in the 2016 election — including the FBI’s probe into ties between former President Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia — as well as an investigation into Deripaska himself.   

Some former FBI officials previously expressed to Rolling Stone their belief that McGonigal was motivated by “greed and not espionage.” But his rank and access within the FBI means the long exposure for the bureau could be devastating. “The potential here is that he could be one of the most devastating spies in U.S. history but there’s not enough evidence to make that claim,” retired CIA officer John Sipher told Rolling Stone in February. 

“His arrest is a sorry day for the FBI,” added a retired senior FBI official. “The bureau has taken a beating the last few years with Trump and others attacking it. His arrest is all we need.”