Ford's friend criticizes FBI for not interviewing him
A friend of Christine Blasey Ford has criticized the FBI for not interviewing him as part of its investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
Keith Koegler said in a sworn statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday that Ford told him in 2016 that a federal court judge in Washington, D.C,. sexually assaulted her in high school. He said Ford identified the alleged assailant in an email as Kavanaugh.
Koegler said he is a "corroborating witness," which is a witness whose testimony supports or confirms testimony already given. It is not the same as an eyewitness.
Koegler said there are a minimum of seven people who knew about Ford's allegation of sexual assault against Kavanaugh before his nomination and were not interviewed by the FBI.
"The process by which the Senate Judiciary Committee has 'investigated' the facts related to the assault has been a shameless effort to protect Judge Kavanaugh," Koegler wrote in his sworn statement. "The fact that the FBI did not interview either Christine or Judge Kavanaugh, by itself, renders absurd any assertion that the investigation was 'thorough.'"
Koegler said in the letter that he had the copy of an email thread with Ford from June 29, 2018, in which she identified Kavanaugh as the man she previously said sexually assaulted her.
Ford testified last week before the Senate Judiciary Committee that she is "100 percent certain" Kavanaugh tried to sexually assault her in 1982. Kavanaugh has denied the allegation.
After Ford and Kavanaugh's testimonies, President Trump called for an FBI investigation. The investigation concluded earlier this week, and senators reviewed the 46-page report on Thursday.
Ford's lawyers have slammed the investigation as "not a meaningful investigation in any sense of the word." Several Democrats have also criticized the investigation.
The Senate is expected to confirm Kavanaugh Saturday.