A senior federal prosecutor who had been serving on the team investigating former Central Intelligence Agency Director John Brennan has been removed from the case, two people familiar with the matter said.
Maria Medetis Long, who leads the national security section in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami, informed attorneys connected to the inquiry late on Thursday that she is no longer working on the investigation, according to the sources. The probe is looking into whether Brennan made false statements during his 2023 congressional testimony concerning the U.S. intelligence community's assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. election to benefit Donald Trump.
It was not immediately clear from public accounts what prompted Medetis Long’s removal from the team. The investigation has been active for months and has included plans for follow-up witness interviews.
A Justice Department spokesperson confirmed the personnel change and described it as part of routine case management. The spokesperson said, "Attorneys are moved around on cases so offices can most effectively allocate resources." They added that "It is completely healthy and normal to change members of legal teams."
Authorities are continuing to prepare witness interviews tied to the probe. Officials have indicated the Federal Bureau of Investigation was planning to interview roughly a half-dozen witnesses, including former U.S. intelligence officials, over the next several weeks as part of the effort to assess whether false statements were made.
Brennan, who appears regularly as a cable news analyst and has long been a critic of Donald Trump, has denounced reported investigations into him as politically biased and a misuse of the legal system. His lawyer has said there is no legal basis for an investigation.
Within the Justice Department there has been reported frustration about the pace of the inquiry. A DOJ official said on Friday there had been frustration inside the department with the pace of the investigation. Another source familiar with the investigation said some witness interviews were not expected to take place until June.
The leadership of the department has faced outside pressure tied to expectations about prosecutions. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has been urged to produce prosecutions of individuals viewed by some as political opponents of former President Trump after his predecessor, Pam Bondi, was removed amid Trump's dissatisfaction with her handling of probes he had sought.
Medetis Long is the head of the national security section in the Miami office. She was part of the prosecution team that secured a conviction last year of a man tried for attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf club in 2024.
As the inquiry proceeds without Medetis Long on the team, officials continue to prepare witness interviews and manage internal resources while public statements emphasize that personnel adjustments are a normal part of Justice Department case work.