CNN
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Justice Department prosecutors in Washington, DC have turned the corruption investigation over to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
State Attorney Kent Schaffer, who is investigating Paxton in a separate case, said in an interview with CNN that the Department of Justice notified him of the change. was under government control.
The recent takeover by federal prosecutors at Justice Department headquarters in Washington is the latest development in the investigation of the Texas Attorney General, who in 2020 accused Paxton of bribery, abuse of power, and other potential crimes. It was initiated after accusations of criminal conduct. It comes days after Paxton agreed to his $3.3 million interim settlement with his four aides, who filed public complaints.
Paxton has repeatedly denied the allegations of wrongdoing. In a statement to CNN after the settlement was announced last week, Paxton said he “choose this path” to “solve this issue.”
The investigation will now be handled by the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section, Shaffer said. The Public Integrity Section handles high-profile prosecutions of government officials, including cases of bribery and corruption.
It is not clear why the Texas federal prosecutor was replaced in this case.
A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment.
Paxton’s attorney, Dan Cogdell, told the Associated Press. first reported He had previously asked the West District of Texas prosecutor to drop the case because there was an “obvious conflict,” but he had not been personally notified of the move. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
CNN has also reached out to Paxton’s office for comment.
In an interview with CNN, Shaffer said: [the Texas prosecutors] The prosecution could not have continued. He said he was worried, “Ken Paxton has committed a crime…and he won’t have to answer for it.”
“This cat has nine lives, and it looks like he’s used up seven or eight of them.”
