The top federal prosecutor who supervised criminal cases at the U.S. Attorney's office in Washington, D.C., resigned Tuesday, citing what she described as an improper demand by officials appointed by President Donald Trump's administration to launch a criminal probe and pursue an asset freeze.
In a letter to the interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin reviewed by Reuters, the office's criminal chief Denise Cheung wrote that the Trump administration had ordered her to investigate a government contract awarded during Joe Biden's administration and pursue a freeze of the recipient's assets.
Cheung said that neither request was supported by the evidence, which she said she was provided with by the Deputy Attorney General's office.
"I have been proud to serve at the U.S. Department of Justice and this office for over 24 years," she wrote in her letter. "During my tenure, which has spanned over many different administrations, I have always been guided by the oath I took ... to support and defend the Constitution."
The letter did not specify which executive branch agency contract was at the heart of the request, or which entity received the government contract.
Cheung's resignation is the latest by career Justice Department prosecutors to protest what they see as improper political interference by the Trump administration in criminal investigations.
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