Justice Dept. in DC taking over Texas AG corruption probe

By JAKE BLEIBERG and ERIC TUCKER
Associated Press

DALLAS (AP) — Justice Department officials in Washington have taken over the corruption investigation into Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, removing the case from the hands of the federal prosecutors in Texas who’d long been leading the probe. That’s according to a statement by state prosecutors handling their own case against Paxton. It’s the latest development in the federal investigation into Paxton. He came under FBI scrutiny in 2020 after his own top deputies accused him of bribery and abusing his office to help one of his campaign contributors. It was not clear why the local prosecuting office was recused. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment Thursday.