John Durham’s investigation of the Trump-Russia probe enters final stages

By Marshall Cohen, Katelyn Polantz and Evan Perez, CNN

Updated 4:53 PM ET, Wed September 14, 2022

Special Counsel John Durham on May 26, 2022 in Washington, DC.

(CNN)Special counsel John Durham’s office is in the final stages of its closely watched investigation into potential criminal misconduct during the Trump-Russia probe, and his team is finishing up its written report, according to multiple people briefed on the matter.

Top Durham prosecutor Andrew DeFilippis — who led the team’s case against a Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer earlier this year, which ended in a swift acquittal — was supposed to handle another trial next month, but instead is leaving the Justice Department for a job at a private law firm, according to sources. DeFilippis in recent months was at one point working on writing a report on Durham’s findings, which will be submitted to Attorney General Merrick Garland.

The Steele dossier: A reckoning

The scheduled upcoming trial, against a Russian expat who was a primary source of information for the infamous Trump-Russia dossier, is set to begin next month in Alexandria, Virginia. But four weeks before trial, Durham’s case suffered a significant blow, with prosecutors acknowledging in recent court filings that they can’t convince a critical witness to return to the US to testify.