The FBI raided the home of a Tampa Bay politician earlier this month in connection with a hack of former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
On May 8, the FBI searched the home belonging to media consultant Tim Burke, who formally worked for the Daily Beast and other news outlets, and Tampa Bay City Councilwoman Lynn Hurtak in connection to an investigation into leaked Fox News video footage, the Tampa Bay Times reported on Friday.
A letter from federal prosecutors to Fox News “describes an ongoing criminal probe into computer hacks at the company, including unaired video from Tucker Carlson’s show,” according to the Tampa Bay newspaper. The letter does not cite Burke or Hurtak, but the Times confirmed the connection between the raid and the investigation.
Hurtak — an at-large councilwomen who was elected as a nonpartisan but is a registered Democrat — confirmed the search after it happened. At the time, she said it “was solely related to my husband’s work as a journalist.”
More from the Tampa Bay Times:
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Trezevant wrote the letter asking that Fox News preserve information and records related to the investigation for a period of at least 90 days. The government views the network “as one of the potential victim- witnesses” of the alleged criminal conduct, Trezevant wrote.
The investigation, according to the letter, concerns allegations of unauthorized computer access; interception of wire, oral or electronic communication; conspiracy; and other federal crimes. Trezevant is assigned to the criminal probe and is listed on court filings related to the search at Burke and Hurtak’s home.
Importantly, neither Burke nor Hurtak have been accused of wrongdoing.
Still, a judge must have agreed that federal investigators would have located evidence of a crime in the home because investigators had gathered probable cause for the search warrant. Otherwise, the search would not have been authorized. Burke previously confirmed his name was listed on the warrant.
Moreover, neither Media Matters nor Vice — the two outlets that published the unaired Carlson footage — have been accused of wrongdoing. It’s also not clear what exact crime federal investigators believe was committed.
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