Yuri Gripas/Reuters
The Justice Department has launched a probe into whether Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke used his “office for personal gain,” according to a CNN report. That investigation reportedly comes after the Interior Department’s inspector general referred one of its Zinke probes to the DOJ. Deputy Inspector General Mary L. Kendall, who is currently serving as the department’s inspector general, is reportedly “conducting at least three probes” related to Zinke—including one involving a real-estate deal with the Halliburton chairman and the decision to not let two tribes “operate a casino in Connecticut,” The Washington Post reports. While the IG’s office often writes reports at the conclusion of investigations, it reportedly only refers cases to the Justice Department when it determines “potential criminal violations” may have occurred. A senior White House official told the Post the White House knows the investigation is looking into whether Zinke “used his office to help himself.”