The chairman of the United States Senate Intelligence Committee, Richard Burr, has stepped aside after the FBI served a search warrant for his mobile phone as part of an ongoing insider-trading investigation tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
Key points:
- Mr Burr and his wife sold stocks including in hospitality businesses in late-January and mid-February
- Mr Burr acknowledged selling the stocks because of coronavirus but said he relied on “public news reports”
- He was not the only US politician to sell off stocks before the market slide
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced the move, saying he and Mr Burr had agreed that it was in the committee’s best interests.
FBI officials showed up at Mr Burr’s home with