Former FBI Head of Counterintelligence Charged with Concealing Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars from Foreign Sources

A former head of counterintelligence for the FBI’s New York field office was charged in two separate indictments Monday for allegedly working with a sanctioned Russian oligarch and concealing hundreds of thousands of dollars he received from a former employee of an Albanian intelligence agency.

Charles McGonigal, a 22-year veteran of the FBI until he retired in 2018, was arrested Saturday at John F. Kennedy International Airport Saturday when returning from international travel, a source familiar with the arrest tells CNN.

According to a Jan. 18 indictment, a D.C. federal grand jury charged McGonigal with nine counts relating to a scheme in which he allegedly took hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash from a former foreign intelligence official. The indictment does not specify whether McGonigal did anything specifically in exchange for the money — he faces charges of concealment, false statements, and falsifying official records.

McGonigal is also accused of concealing a $225,000 payment while he was working for the bureau. The indictment alleges that he failed to disclose the payment on his financial disclosure forms and falsely told FBI investigators that he had not received any payments from foreign sources.

The charges against McGonigal come as the FBI continues to investigate the activities of foreign intelligence services and their attempts to influence U.S. government officials. The charges also serve as a reminder that the FBI is committed to holding its own personnel accountable for any alleged wrongdoing.