Robert Mueller recently asked the FBI to investigate a possible scam in which women were offered cash to fabricate sexual misconduct accusations against him, a representative for the special counsel revealed Tuesday.
In a rare statement, Mueller’s top spokesman, Peter Carr, said the special counsel team became aware of the alleged payoff scheme last week.
“We immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation,” Carr said, calling the claims against Mueller “false.”
The FBI declined to comment.
A U.S. official confirmed the special counsel’s office learned of the apparent scheme from reporters inquiring about receiving emails from a Florida woman who alleged right-wing conspiracy theorist Jack Burkman had offered her more than $20,000 to come forward with misconduct claims against Mueller.
The woman’s email, which was screen-grabbed and posted on social media by several journalists, states someone identifying himself as Bill Christensen recently called and asked her questions about Mueller, whom she said she worked for as a paralegal at the San Francisco offices of law firm Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw & Pittman in the 1970s.
Christensen, speaking in a British accent, told the unidentified woman he represented Burkman, a Republican lobbyist infamous for perpetuating a debunked conspiracy theory claiming Hillary Clinton was responsible for the 2016 death of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich.
She said Christensen was reluctant to explain specifics and urged her to download Signal, a secure messaging app.
“I downloaded the app and he called me on that app a few minutes later,” the woman said. “He said (and I will never forget exactly what it was), ‘I want you to make accusations of sexual misconduct and workplace harassment against Robert Mueller, and I want you to sign a sworn affidavit to that effect.’ ”
The woman says she “immediately” hung up and deleted the app.
“I didn’t see Robert Mueller very much when I worked at Pillsbury, but when I did see him, he was always very polite to me, and was never inappropriate,” she said. “I don’t know what these people are looking for but I’m not going to be part of some kind of Washington, D.C., drama for any price.”
Mueller worked as an attorney at Pillsbury between 1973 and 1976. A spokesman for the law firm did not respond to emailed questions.
Within minutes of Carr’s statement, Burkman posted a video on Facebook announcing he plans to host a news conference in Arlington, Va., on Thursday focused on “the first of the sex assault victims of Robert Mueller.”
“Mueller has done bad things to a number of women, the first of whom is coming out this Thursday,” Burkman said, without providing evidence or specifics.
Burkman later tweeted that “the allegation of paying a woman” is “false” but wouldn’t comment on whether Christensen works for him or who he is.
NBC News reported the odd suspected plot may have been concocted by Surefire Intelligence, a self-professed “intel agency” with a website whose domain records contain an email address belonging to Jacob Wohl, a pro-Trump troll known for spreading misinformation and far-right conspiracy theories. The website also has a contact number that redirects to a voicemail that belongs to Wohl’s mother.
Wohl told the Daily News in a Twitter message he has nothing to do with the alleged plot and that he only tweeted about the matter ahead of Carr’s announcement because he had heard of it “from a friend of a friend who’s a lobbyist in DC.” The 20-year-old pro-Trump activist stopped responding following the Surefire Intelligence revelations.
Separately, Vermont Law School professor and author Jennifer Taub confirmed on Twitter she had been contacted by Surefire Intelligence about her “past encounters” with Mueller. She said she has never met Mueller.
Trump and his allies have long tried to discredit Mueller, accusing him of orchestrating a politically motivated “witch hunt,” even though his probe into the president’s campaign has produced dozens of indictments against Trump associates and Russian government operatives, including Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Mueller is widely expected to deliver key findings of his collusion probe following next week’s congressional midterm elections.
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