WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) never cross-checked sworn testimony by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denying the exchange of classified information on her private email server during its recent criminal investigation, US Congressman Jason Chaffetz told Sputnik.
"I was shocked to learn that the FBI had not investigated Hillary Clinton’s sworn testimony before Congress," Chaffetz said on Tuesday referring to her 11-hour-long session before the US House of Representatives Select Benghazi Committee in October 2015.
During her 2015 testimony before Congress, Clinton stated that "there was nothing marked classified" in emails she sent or received on her private server.
FBI Director James Comey announced last week that the agency’s investigation of Clinton revealed that 110 emails in 52 email chains contained information that was classified at the time it was sent or received.
In response to the FBI’s findings, Chaffetz, the head of the US House of Representatives Government Oversight Committee, along with House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, are pressing for a perjury investigation.
On Monday, the two lawmakers sent a letter to the FBI recommending the Washington, DC Attorney General look into Clinton’s 2015 testimony to see whether or not she lied before Congress.
Making a criminal recommendation is "the procedural way you get the FBI to do an investigation," Chaffetz explained.
FBI Director Comey told lawmakers in testimony last week that he would need a criminal referral from Congress to investigate the issue of whether Clinton perjured herself before the Benghazi Committee.
On July 5, the US Department of Justice cleared Hillary Clinton of any criminal charges related to her use of a private email server and account during her time as Secretary of State.
