Fauci adviser David Morens pleads guilty to avoiding records requests, conspiracy to defraud government

WASHINGTON — David Morens, a former top National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases official, pleaded guilty Tuesday on charges related to concealing records from Freedom of Information Act requests. Morens, a longtime senior adviser to former NIAID leader Anthony Fauci, said he had agreed, with at least one other individual, to knowingly avoid the public disclosure law and to use his influence to advance the interests of a particular company. Morens directed one of the co-conspirators to keep their messages off government phones and email servers, adding he hoped to get the person “uber funded” in the future, according to court documents laying out the facts that the defendant and prosecutors agreed to. Through the relationship, Morens received wine and offers of future meals at high-end restaurants. The initial indictment and plea documents do not name the two other individuals or the company, though one matches the description of EcoHealth Alliance’s then-president, Peter …