Hillary Clinton was interviewed by the FBI Saturday as part of the investigation into the handling of sensitive information on her personal computer server while she was secretary of state.
Clinton was interviewed for three-and-half hours at FBI headquarters in Washington, according to her campaign.
“Secretary Clinton gave a voluntary interview this morning about her email arrangements while she was secretary," Clinton campaign spokesman Nick Merrill said in a statement. "She is pleased to have had the opportunity to assist the Department of Justice in bringing this review to a conclusion. Out of respect for the investigative process, she will not comment further on her interview.”
The year-long investigation is expected to conclude in the coming weeks, though it could take longer, leaving open the probability it will cast a shadow over Clinton as she accepts the Democratic Party’s nomination for president in Philadelphia this month and launches her general election campaign against Republican Donald Trump.
At least 2,079 emails that Clinton sent or received contained classified material, according to a State Department review of emails Clinton turned over after she left the department. Most were at the confidential level, which is the lowest level of classification, but a handful were at the top secret level.
None of Clinton’s emails was marked as classified during her tenure, State Department officials say, but intelligence officials say some material was clearly classified at the time. Clinton initially said she did not send or receive any classified information – a denial she later adjusted, saying that none was marked as classified at the time.
Already, the investigation includes her top aides, including those who also sent and received classified information. Several of them have reportedly been interviewed by the FBI, including former Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills and former Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin.
A report by the State Department inspector general determined that her email arrangement violated State Department rules, that she did not seek permission for the setup and that her was shut down at least once because of fears it had been hacked.
Clinton failed to hand over all her work emails, despite being asked to do so repeatedly. She said she is unable to access emails she sent or received in her first two months as secretary of state because her emails were not yet being captured on herserver. And in recent weeks,several new batches of emails have come to light that she did not turn over.
Legal experts say investigators could be looking into potential violations of Section 1924 of Title 18, which deals with the unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents or material, or even the Espionage Act, which makes it a crime for anyone "through gross negligence," to allow the loss, theft or removal of classified information or fails to promptly report such mishandling to his superior.
Anita Kumar: 202-383-6017, @anitakumar01
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