Justice Dept. investigating former New York Gov. Cuomo over pandemic
testimony, AP source says
[May 21, 2025]
By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and ERIC TUCKER
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has opened a criminal
investigation into former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo after congressional
Republicans recommended that he be charged with lying over his handling
of the COVID-19 pandemic, a person familiar with the matter said
Tuesday.
The investigation by the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington follows a
referral from Rep. James Comer, Republican chairman of the House
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, over statements Cuomo made
to lawmakers investigating his management of the pandemic when the virus
was spreading through nursing homes, the person said. They spoke on the
condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly
discuss an ongoing investigation.
The investigation plunges the Justice Department yet again into New York
politics as Cuomo runs for New York City mayor. It comes just months
after federal prosecutors abandoned a corruption case against New York
Mayor Eric Adams — Cuomo’s opponent in the mayoral race — citing a
desire to free Adams up to cooperate with the Trump administration’s
immigration crackdown.
A spokesperson for Cuomo said Tuesday that the former governor was never
informed of any such investigation.
“So why would someone leak it now? The answer is obvious: This is
lawfare and election interference plain and simple — something President
Trump and his top Department of Justice officials say they are against,”
Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said in an email.
Azzopardi added, “Governor Cuomo testified truthfully to the best of his
recollection about events from four years earlier, and he offered to
address any follow-up questions from the Subcommittee — but from the
beginning this was all transparently political.”
The investigation was first reported Tuesday by The New York Times. The
Justice Department declined Tuesday to comment. Spokespeople for the
U.S. attorney’s office in Washington didn’t immediately respond to
messages seeking comment.
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The inquiry also subjects the department to claims that it is
pursuing retribution against political adversaries. The new leader
of the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, Jeanine Pirro, ran
unsuccessfully against Cuomo for New York attorney general in 2006
and has been a harsh critic in the years since, publicly accusing
him of a coverup of nursing home deaths. The Justice Department
separately has launched a mortgage fraud investigation into New York
Attorney General Letitia James, who sued Trump for civil fraud.
The investigation into Cuomo revisits a years-old, politically
divisive question over the then-governor’s handling of the COVID-19
pandemic in nursing homes. Republicans have zeroed in on a
controversial directive his administration issued in March 2020 that
initially barred nursing homes from refusing to accept patients just
because they had had COVID-19. More than 9,000 recovering
coronavirus patients were released from hospitals into nursing homes
under the directive, which was rescinded amid speculation that it
had accelerated outbreaks.
Comer referred Cuomo to the Justice Department for possible criminal
prosecution last month, alleging that he made false statements to
lawmakers during a hearing last year focused on his decision-making.
Cuomo adamantly defended himself during the hearing, blaming the
earlier Trump administration for failing to provide enough testing
and personal protective equipment in the early days of the pandemic.
“These are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the
culpability of the federal response, which was malpractice,” Cuomo
said.
But Comer asserted that Cuomo had lied during the hearing. He cited
what he said was evidence of Cuomo’s direct involvement in a state
report that the congressman said “low-balled” nursing home
fatalities.
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