Top Justice Department security official to leave post next week after leaks reports: NY Times

FILE PHOTO: Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers attends a virtual news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division is expected to leave his post by the end of next week, the New York Times reported on Monday, following a series of reported leak probes under the Trump administration targeting the media, lawmakers and a former White House lawyer.

The departure of John Demers, a holdover from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, had been arranged months ago, the Times reported. He is scheduled to leave on June 25.

The move follows reports of former President Donald Trump's Justice Department seizing records of lawmakers and journalists as part of an aggressive crackdown on leaks.

An internal Justice Department watchdog, Inspector General Michael Horowitz, said on Friday he would investigate whether it was proper for the department to use subpoenas to obtain those phone records.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Jonathan Oatis)