The Capitol Police and FBI are investigating remarks reported to have been made by Roger Stone, a longtime Republican operative and informal adviser to former President Donald Trump, in which he expressed a desire for the deaths of two Democratic lawmakers in the weeks before the 2020 election, a government official familiar with the matter said Tuesday.
The investigation into Stone was opened shortly after the website Mediaite released an audio recording in which someone sounding like him can be heard discussing Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York and Rep. Eric Swalwell of California, who are among Trump’s most vocal congressional critics.
“It’s time to do it,” the speaker can be heard saying. “Let’s go find Swalwell. It’s time to do it. Then we’ll see how brave the rest of them are. It’s time to do it. It’s either Swalwell or Nadler has to die before the election. They need to get the message.”
An article by Mediaite accompanying the recording claimed that Stone made the remarks to an associate, Salvatore Greco, a former New York City police officer, at a restaurant in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. But the recording itself does not make clear whom the speaker was addressing.
Stone has denied making the comments, calling the recording “a deepfake.” He repeated that denial Tuesday, claiming that “forensic examinations” had shown the recording to be fake. He did not respond to a question about the FBI and Capitol Police investigation.
Both agencies declined to comment on the inquiry.