USAID head Peter Marocco tells lawmakers he’s eyeing potential criminal charges for foreign aid fraud: report

The acting head of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) told congressional lawmakers Wednesday his staff was preparing potential criminal referrals against those who misused taxpayer dollars intended for foreign development programs.

The New York Times said Peter Marocco made his remarks while speaking with members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee during a closed-door meeting.

An internal review is in its early stages, but members of Marocco’s team believe they’ve uncovered a pattern of illegal activity at the agency, which serves as the main component used by the United States to deliver foreign aid. 

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An American flag and USAID flag fly outside the USAID building in Washington, D.C., Feb. 1, 2025.  (Reuters/Annabelle Gordon)

Marocco has been tasked by President Donald Trump with dismantling USAID and told lawmakers he was looking at contracts and grants awarded by the agency. 

Much of the money given by USAID is supposed to promote stability and economic growth and supply humanitarian assistance in fragile regions. 

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court denied the Trump administration’s request to block a lower court’s order for the administration to make nearly $2 billion in USAID payments, delivering a near-term reprieve to international aid groups and contractors seeking payment for previously completed projects.

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Peter Marocco and President Donald Trump  (Getty Images)

U.S. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., the chairman of the foreign affairs panel, told the Times USAID is structured in such a way that makes accountability difficult. 

“Mr. Marocco was very clear in exposing the waste that goes on out there and in pointing out the way that many of these programs in state and USAID were designed to not be accountable,” he said. 

USAID was one of the first targets by the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is charged with rooting out wasteful spending. 

Demonstrators and lawmakers rally against President Donald Trump and ally Elon Musk on Capitol Hill in Washington Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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Fox News Digital has reached out to USAID for comment. 

Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.