Top FBI official who investigated Trump's Russia links is HIMSELF being investigated over ties to Moscow: Ex head of counterintelligence 'had business dealings with sanctioned oligarch Oleg Deripaska' and could face up to five years in jail

A senior FBI official who investigated Donald Trump's alleged links to Russia is now under the microscope for his own Moscow ties, a bombshell new report revealed on Thursday.

Charles McGonigal is the former counterintelligence chief at the FBI's New York City field office.

He has not been charged with any crimes, Insider reports. 

But if McGonigal's work with Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska proves to have violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act, he could face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine at most.

Deripaska, a close ally of Vladimir Putin's, was also a close contact of Trump 2016 campaign chair Paul Manafort and is thought to have played a leading role in the Kremlin's efforts to interfere in that presidential race.

He and business tied to him were sanctioned by the Treasury Department for 'malign activity' and 'attempting to subvert western democracies, and malicious cyber-activities.'

McGonigal's links to Deripaska are reportedly at the heart of a grand jury subpoena that was issued in secret in November 2021.

It's not clear if the investigation is still ongoing.