Public Trust Tracker

INV-056 · Money & ethics · Misuse of office

Justice Department probe of Rep. Andy Ogles dropped after his lawyer wrote to Ed Martin (allegation)

Stage 2 of 5: Inquiry · Letters and records requests · Last development 23 Oct 2026

The Justice Department ended a criminal investigation into campaign finance issues involving Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), in which the FBI had seized his phone in 2024. Records obtained by American Oversight show Ogles's lawyer had emailed Ed Martin, then head of DOJ's Weaponization Working Group, and a top aide to the Deputy Attorney General asking for the probe to end. The watchdog has asked DOJ's Inspector General to examine whether political favoritism played a role.

Allegation only. The records show the request and Martin's acknowledgment, not what Martin or anyone else did next. No official finding links the email to the closure. Ogles lost his August 2026 primary.

People
Andy Ogles, Ed Martin, Jordan Fox
Agencies
Justice Dept, FBI
Reviewed by
DOJ Inspector General (requested)

Timeline

  1. American Oversight (watchdog group) asks DOJ Inspector General Don Berthiaume to examine whether political favoritism influenced the closure and whether anyone intervened on Ogles's behalf. [1]

  2. The Justice Department agrees to return the phone the FBI seized from Ogles in 2024 and to destroy information taken from it and his email account, signalling the end of the investigation (AP and NewsChannel 5, as cited by American Oversight). [1]

  3. Ogles's attorney emails Ed Martin and Jordan Fox, chief of staff to then-Deputy Attorney General Blanche, seeking "termination of the Department's criminal investigation into campaign finance issues". Martin acknowledges receipt. DOJ did not release the attached letter. [1]

Responses

  • Rep. Andy Ogles (May 2026): "This DOJ has cleared me and cleared so many others." [1]
  • Justice Department: Has given no public explanation for closing the investigation. [1]

Who is acting on it

  • Asked for an investigation American Oversight: Asked the DOJ inspector general whether political favoritism influenced closing the Ogles investigation (23 Oct 2026, No reply or result recorded yet)

Sources

  1. American Oversight, 23 Oct 2026

Cite this case

Public Trust Tracker. "Justice Department probe of Rep. Andy Ogles dropped after his lawyer wrote to Ed Martin (allegation)" (INV-056). Last updated 23 Oct 2026. https://publictrusttracker.org/case/inv-056-justice-department-probe-of-rep-andy-ogles-dropped-after-his/

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