FIRST ON FOX â A former senior federal prosecutor who served in the Biden administration has been hit with a criminal investigation referral asking the Justice Department to look into whether she misled federal agents about her role in an investigation, Fox News Digital has learned.
Jina Choi joined the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of California in late 2023, shortly after which Biden-appointed U.S. Attorney Ismail Ramsey tapped her to lead its Corporate and Securities Fraud Section, which handles major corporate and securities cases across the Bay Area, including Silicon Valley.
Before joining the office, however, Choi had represented IRL, a social-media startup co-founded by Abraham Shafi. The company was built around organizing and connecting people through events. IRL shut down in 2023 after a board-directed investigation concluded that 95% of its users were likely bots, a finding Shafi disputed. Shafi was later indicted in 2025 on federal fraud and obstruction charges.
The referral represents an unusually aggressive challenge to the conduct of a former prosecutor involved in the broader matter.
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Cully Stimson, acting director of the Heritage Foundations Legal Policy Center and himself a former federal prosecutor, told Fox News Digital that, while it is common for defense teams to attack prosecutors, resorting to a criminal investigation referral is rare.
The referral, sent on Tuesday by a lawyer Shafi retained separately from his defense, turns on whether Choi remained involved in the IRL investigation after joining the U.S. Attorneys Office despite being screened from the matter because of her prior representation of the company. The Justice Department generally has no obligation to respond to referrals like this.
Prosecutors said Choi was walled off from the federal investigation involving IRL and Shafi. But Shafis lawyer now alleges that internal communications and an FBI interview report show she remained involved in the matter and later understated that involvement to federal agents.
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The FBI declined to comment when reached by Fox News Digital.
In the criminal referral sent to the Justice Department on Tuesday, Shafis lawyer asked federal authorities to investigate whether Choi made false statements about her role in the investigation into IRL.
The federal investigation into IRL predated Chois arrival at the U.S. Attorneys Office. Prosecutors have said she was screened from the matter because of her prior representation of the company.
Shafis defense claims to have obtained internal emails sent by Choi as well as FBI interview memoranda recounting a conversation she had with federal agents from the prosecution. Shafis lawyer argues the documents contradict Chois account to agents.
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