Well, this is an unexpected surprise to those who have been following this story.
We live in such a chaotic world with the blunder that has been the Biden administration. So much has happened over the past three years that many have forgotten about the 2017 leak of President Trump‘s tax documents.
Charles Edward Littlejohn, who worked as an IRS consultant from 2008-2013, was given the maximum sentence of 5 years for illegally disclosing the tax documents of President Trump and others.
Littlejohn reportedly used his access to IRS databases to download them in a way that went unnoticed until the scandal broke.
In addition to President Trump‘s tax records, Littlejohn also leaked the tax records of 7,500 other Americans.
Following the leak and the ensuing investigation, Littlejohn allegedly sought to cover his tracks by deleting his digital footprints, thereby obstructing the investigation. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis led the charge in getting Littlejohn sentenced:
“This week I joined my Way sand Means GOP colleagues in requesting the U.S. District Court for DC give IRS leaker Charles Edward Littlejohn the maximum sentence of 5 years for stealing & leaking confidential taxpayer information & obstructing The Justice Dept’s investigation.
Mr. Littlejohn’s action not only violated our laws but lessened trust in our American tax system – all for the sake of impacting a presidential election.
Ways and Means GOP will continue to conduct oversight of the IRS & work to prevent these types of politically motivated attacks from occurring in the future.”
This week I joined my @WaysandMeansGOP colleagues in requesting the U.S. District Court for DC give IRS leaker Charles Edward Littlejohn the maximum sentence of 5 years for stealing & leaking confidential taxpayer information & obstructing @TheJusticeDept's investigation.
Mr.… pic.twitter.com/nxTVlQTCiy
— Office of Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (@RepMalliotakis) January 26, 2024
CNN provided this background information on the initial leak:
Littlejohn leaked the information to two news outlets and deleted the documents from his IRS-assigned laptop before returning it and covered the rest of his digital tracks by deleting places where he initially stored the information.
It was feared that Littlejohn would get little to no jail time for his actions, according to writer Peter Schweizer:
“Former IRS contractor Charles Edward Littlejohn, who stole and helped publicize the confidential tax records of Donald Trump and an estimated 7,500 other wealthy Americans, could face little or no jail time when he’s sentenced later this month because the DOJ allowed him to plead guilty to a single felony count.”
Former IRS contractor Charles Edward Littlejohn, who stole and helped publicize the confidential tax records of Donald Trump and an estimated 7,500 other wealthy Americans, could face little or no jail time when he's sentenced later this month, because the DOJ allowed him to…
— Peter Schweizer (@peterschweizer) January 25, 2024
BBC News featured this quote from Judge Reyes, who handed down the sentence:
“He targeted the sitting president of the United States of America, and that is exceptional by any measure.
It cannot be open season on our elected officials.”
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