Denise Cheung Biography
Denise Cheung was the head of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington prior to her resignation on 18, 2025. Her resignation came after she declined a request from her Trump-appointed superiors to open a grand jury investigation into an Environmental Protection Agency funding decision during the Biden administration and then use DOJ’s powers to freeze that funding.
Denise Cheung DOJ
Denise is a top criminal prosecutor in Washington, DC, US Attorney’s office. She has worked for the DOJ for over 20 years. She started as an Assistant United States Attorney.
She served as Attorney General Eric Holder’s top national security adviser. Prior to that, she was in the National Security Section of the D.C. federal prosecutor’s office where she investigated and prosecuted cases related to terrorist attacks abroad, violations of export sanctions, material support to terrorists, presidential threats and espionage.
Denise Cheung Resignation
On February 18, 2025, Cheung resigned from her position as the head of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington after she was asked to launch a criminal probe of a government contract awarded under former President Joe Biden. She was asked to open a probe into a contract that she did not identify and that she believed the request was not supported by evidence to justify a grand jury probe into crimes including wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States.
When she declined to open a grand jury investigation citing lack of evidence, she was ordered to then pursue an asset freeze to prevent the recipient of the contract from drawing down the government funds.In her letter, she said she condulted with officials in the FBI Washington field office and ultimately sent the bank a letter “recommending a 30-day administrative freeze on certain assets.”
After the letter was sent, she alleges that Martin and the No. 2 official in the office called her Monday night to say the letter was not adequate, and they ordered her to immediately send a second letter to the bank demanding it freeze the assets as part of a criminal investigation.
“When I explained that the quantum of evidence did not support that action, you stated that you believed that there was sufficient evidence. Based upon the evidence I have reviewed, I still do not believe there is sufficient evidence to issue the letter you described, including sufficient evidence to tell the bank there is probable cause to seize the particular accounts identified,” she wrote.
According to the letter, she was ordered to resign. She announced her resignation early Tuesday.
In her letter to interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin, she wrote, “”I have been proud to serve at the U.S. Department of Justice and this office for over 24 years. During my tenure, which has spanned over many different administrations, I have always been guided by the oath I took …to support and defend the Constitution.”
Her resignation comes a day after Trump nominated Ed Martin as the permanent head of the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office. Martin is a right-wing activist who sat on a board that raised cash for rioters at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and pushed for their mass reprieve.
Earlier in the week, Martin, in his capacity as interim head of the office, said he would investigate former special counsel Jack Smith and a law firm that supposedly gave Smith free legal services. He also threatened to go after anyone who tries to hinder Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency efforts.
Justice Department spokesperson said Cheung Refused to Follow Chain of Command
A Justice Department spokesperson gave a statement to CNN alleging that Cheung defied chain of command.
“Refusing a basic request to pause an investigation so officials can examine the potential waste of government funds is not an act of heroism – just a failure to follow chain of command.”
Her departure revolves around the implementation of stopping some funding from the EPA to non-profit groups. EPA administrator Lee Zeldin’s said he has had “found” $20 billion worth of funding from former President Joe Biden’s 2022 climate law in a Citibank account, and wanted to return the money to the US Treasury. The EPA then announced in a press release the EPA would “work with the US Department of Justice” on the matter.
Zeldin has taken interest in a Project Veritas video where a Biden-era EPA employee discussed the administration’s climate funding, comparing it to tossing gold bars off the Titanic.