Ex-NIAID Adviser Indicted for Allegedly Concealing COVID-19 Records

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 10:51:00 +0200

David Morens, a former senior adviser at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), has been indicted by the Justice Department under the Trump administration for allegedly concealing federal records related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Morens, 78, who served in NIAID from 2006 to 2022, is accused of attempting to hide correspondence from public access by using his personal email instead of his official NIH account. The indictment alleges that he and two unnamed co-conspirators sought to influence funding decisions, restore a terminated grant that involved the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and promote the theory that COVID-19 had natural origins. Prosecutors also claimed that Morens received gifts, such as wine and meals at high-end restaurants, as illegal gratuities linked to his actions, including publishing a scientific commentary. The charges include conspiracy against the U.S., falsifying records, and concealment or destruction of federal documents. If convicte