According to The Daily Caller and CNN, the FBI and several U.S. Attorney offices have opened an investigation into the Clinton Foundation even though the Department of Justice objected to one. The officials met several months ago about the possibility of a case:

At the time, three field offices were in agreement an investigation should be launched after the FBI received notification from a bank of suspicious activity from a foreigner who had donated to the Clinton Foundation, according to the official. FBI officials wanted to investigate whether there was a criminal conflict of interest with the State Department and the Clinton Foundation during Clinton’s tenure. The Department of Justice had looked into allegations surrounding the foundation a year earlier after the release of the controversial book “Clinton Cash,” but found them to be unsubstantiated and there was insufficient evidence to open a case.

DOJ officials did not want to open the case at the time because it looked “more political than substantive” since the FBI had an investigation going into Hillary Clinton’s private email server.

Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for Southern District of New York, will lead the investigation. The Daily Caller said his office “has resulted in a large number of convictions of banks, hedge funds and Wall Street insiders.”

The Clinton Foundation caused waves this week when Judicial Watch released emails that showed top Clinton Foundation donors asked then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for favors.

In April 2009, Clinton Foundation official Doug Band sent an email to Clinton’s top aides Cheryl Mills and Huma Abedin about a favor. He reminded them it is important to take care of [Redacted].” Officials blacked out the name, but Abedin said “Personel has been sending him options.”

In another email, Band asks the State Department for another favor for a top donor:

Included in the new document production is a 2009 email in which Band, directs Abedin and Mills to put Lebanese-Nigerian billionaire and Clinton Foundation donor Gilbert Chagoury in touch with the State Department’s “substance person” on Lebanon. Band notes that Chagoury is “key guy there [Lebanon] and to us,” and insists that Abedin call Amb. Jeffrey Feltman to connect him to Chagoury. Chagoury is a close friend of former President Bill Clinton and a top donor to the Clinton Foundation. He has appeared near the top of the Foundation’s donor list as a $1 million to $5 million contributor, according to foundation documents. He also pledged $1 billion to the Clinton Global Initiative. According to a 2010 investigation by PBS Frontline, Chagoury was convicted in 2000 in Switzerland for laundering money from Nigeria, but agreed to a plea deal and repaid $66 million to the Nigerian government.

Clinton pledged she would not participate in the foundation while she served as secretary.



