FBI seizes retired general's data related to Qatar lobbying

The FBI seized the electronic data of a retired four-star general who they say lied about his role in an illegal foreign lobbying campaign on behalf of the wealthy Persian Gulf nation of Qatar.

There is a criminal case against John R. Allen, who led the US and NATO in Afghanistan.

It is part of an investigation that has led to the guilty pleas of a former ambassador and a political donor. Members of Congress have been interviewed.

The court documents detail Allen's efforts to influence the U.S. policy when a diplomatic crisis erupted between the gas rich Persian Gulf monarchy and its neighbors.

In a search warrant application, the FBI agent wrote that there was evidence that the violations were willful.

Allen failed to disclose that he was pursuing multimillion-dollar business deals with the government of Qatar while misrepresenting his role in the lobbying campaign.

During a 2020 interview with law enforcement officials, Allen gave a false version of events, and failed to produce relevant email messages, according to the affidavit.

After The Associated Press contacted federal authorities about the contents of the application, it was removed from the docket.

Allen wouldn't say anything about the new filings. He denied ever working as a Qatari agent and said his efforts to prevent a war from breaking out in the Gulf in order to protect U.S. troops was the reason for his denial.

BeauPhillips told AP last week that Allenvoluntarily cooperated with the government.

According to the affidavit, Allen used his official email account at the think tank to communicate with people in the Middle East.

There was no response to a request for comment. The institution says it has stopped taking funding from the Persian nation.

When Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf countries announced a blockade of the gas-rich monarchy over its alleged ties to terror groups and other issues in mid-2017, Olson was working with Zuberi.

After the blockade was announced, Donald Trump seemed to side with the country.

According to the court papers, Allen was an important player in changing the U.S.'s response. Allen was a lobbyist for the Trump administration to have a friendlier tone towards the Persian Gulf state.

The White House or State Department should issue a statement with language calling on all sides of the Gulf diplomatic crisis to act with restraint, according to an email from Allen.

Federal law enforcement officials say that two days later, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson issued a statement that called on other Gulf countries to "ease the blockade against Qatar" and asked "that there be no further escalation by the parties in the region"

Federal law enforcement authorities say that, as part of the lobbying campaign, Olson and Allen traveled to the country of the ruling emir and other top officials.

The affidavit says Allen gave advice on how to influence U.S. policy at the meeting. Sometimes black operations are illegal. During the diplomatic crisis, it's been accused of orchestrating hack-and-leak operations of its critics and rivals. There has been no wrongdoing by the country.

According to the affidavit, Allen wanted to have a conversation with the two men about his compensation before they left. Allen suggested in an email that he be paid a $20,000 speaker's fee for the weekend trip, even though he wasn't giving a speech.

There is no indication that the speaker's fee was paid. The general was never paid a fee. It isn't clear why. Some of his business associates have accused him of not fulfilling his financial commitments.

The FBI said that Allen had other financial incentives for helping the Qataris.

According to the affidavit, Allen pursued a multimillion-dollar business deal with the Qatari government on behalf of a company where he served as a director.

The FBI said that after they returned from their trip to Qatar, Allen and Olson worked with members of Congress who supported a resolution linking the country to terror financing.

Ted Lieu, a Democrat from California, told law enforcement officials that he thought he was there to support the officials and their position.

Is that true?

You can contact the global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org.

Is that true?

Mustian came from New Orleans.