FBI raids Beverly Hills mansion in Eric Swalwell investigation

Right · 2The FBI raided a Beverly Hills mansion on Tuesday morning, 27 October, as part of the investigation into former Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif. 1 2 Right · 1The New York Post says the raid is believed to have targeted the home of billionaire Stephen Cloobeck, who backed Swalwell's run for governor and let him stay at the mansion; Fox News does not name the owner. 2 Mixed · 2CNN, citing two people familiar with the probe, also reported the search, and one of them said the home belongs to a Swalwell donor; Newsweek says the property's ownership and exact connection to Swalwell were not immediately clear. 3 4

Right · 1According to the Post, Cloobeck reportedly evicted Swalwell after the allegations surfaced, and said: "I am no longer associated with a man that takes advantage of women." 2 Right · 1Swalwell resigned from Congress in April and withdrew from the California governor's race after multiple accusations of sexual misconduct; Fox News says at least five women, including a former staffer, have accused him of sexual misconduct or rape. 1 Right · 1In August, the FBI searched Swalwell's D.C. home and seized his electronic devices at San Francisco International Airport; according to Fox News sources, the operation was related to a sexual misconduct probe, and he was not arrested or detained. 1

Mixed · 2The FBI told Newsweek: "Early this morning the FBI conducted an operation in the Los Angeles region related to an ongoing criminal investigation. We have no further comment." Neither CNN nor Fox, as relayed by Raw Story, said what agents were looking for, and it was not clear whether the search falls under the same investigation as the August operation. 4 3 Right · 1Swalwell has called the allegations false, writing at his resignation: "I will fight the serious false allegations made against me," while adding that he must take responsibility for "the mistakes I did make." 1 Centre · 1Swalwell's attorney, Sara Azari, said when the accusations first emerged: "These accusations are false, fabricated, and deeply offensive - a calculated and transparent political hit job." The BBC reports the allegations include that he raped one woman while she was too intoxicated to respond and sent women unsolicited nude photographs; it has asked his lawyer and the Justice Department for comment. 5

Left · 1Raw Story, which is left-leaning, adds that the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department have also opened criminal investigations, and that the August warrant cited a civil rights law most often used against police officers who abuse their power, per the San Francisco Standard; it cites a National Review legal column calling that theory "a stretch". 3 Left · 1Raw Story also stresses the timing, one week before the 3 November midterms, noting that Attorney General Todd Blanche said last week "I work for President Trump" and has dismissed the informal pre-election period of caution, saying the department does not do "political paybacks"; the outlet frames the search as one of several federal actions against Democrats in the campaign's final weeks. 3 Right · 1Separately, Fox News reports that the White House declassified FBI records on Monday about Swalwell's relationship with Christine "Fang Fang" Fang, a suspected Chinese intelligence operative; in them, Swalwell said he had "physical relations" with her on a handful of occasions, the last in March 2015. 1