WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is investigating former Trump aide Corey Lewandowski over allegations that he profited from his senior role at the Department of Homeland Security, The Post has confirmed.
Lewandowski, who served as President Trump’s first campaign manager during the 2016 election, came under scrutiny after a watchdog referred a complaint alleging that he abused his position at DHS during Trump’s second term.
The DHS Office of Inspector General launched a probe earlier this year into claims that Lewandowski benefited from the awarding of federal contracts while working as a top adviser to then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
In March, the inspector general’s office directed DHS employees to preserve records tied to hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts. The records included no-bid agreements connected to a $220 million advertising campaign featuring Noem, three sources familiar with the matter previously told The Post.
The review also covered alleged efforts to solicit foreign officials and dealings involving The GEO Group, which operates private prisons.
Investigators were additionally examining “pay to play visa schemes” that had raised internal “concerns” at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a DHS agency, according to a fourth person familiar with the investigation.
The referral was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. A representative for Lewandowski denied the allegations, saying his client “has not been contacted by the Justice Department regarding any investigation, and he denies any wrongdoing when he was proudly serving his country in a voluntary capacity.”
Lewandowski described himself as an “unpaid volunteer” for the Trump White House. He and Noem were removed from their DHS roles in March after the Cabinet officials faced damaging testimony before the House and Senate over the advertising campaign.
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During her congressional appearance, Noem also struggled to respond to questions about whether she and Lewandowski had been romantically involved.
After leaving DHS on March 5, Noem became a special envoy and senior adviser at the State Department. Lewandowski departed DHS several weeks later and left government service altogether.
Lewandowski’s appointment as a special government employee was limited to 130 days per calendar year. However, he allegedly extended his time at DHS by avoiding the usual badge-swipe process and entering the agency’s headquarters as part of Noem’s motorcade.
Sources previously told The Post that Lewandowski spent a night with Noem at her government-provided residence — the Coast Guard commandant’s house on a Washington military base, where the former DHS secretary stayed for security reasons.
Lewandowski has also rejected reports that he acted with apparent impunity because he believed Trump would pardon him if he faced prosecution. One Post source previously quoted the former Trump official as saying: “I’m not worried. I do whatever the f–k I want. DJT will pardon me.”
Trump responded to the report Thursday, saying: “All I know is I want my people to be honest, and if they’re not going to be honest, they have to be prosecuted.”
“I view it as if people are not honest, they’re stealing from me as president, they’re stealing from me. So I want my people to be honest, and if they’re not honest, I’ll have my DOJ go and do whatever they have to do,” Trump told reporters outside the White House.
During their time at DHS, Noem and Lewandowski instructed subordinates not to approve contracts, grants or other funding decisions worth more than $100,000 without their final authorization.
In some instances, those directives delayed the release of federal disaster-relief money as well as funding for sections of the border wall.