Steve Bannon, the former advisor of Donald Trump, on Monday surrendered to federal authorities on the criminal charges he faced after defying a subpoena from the lawmakers investigating the US Capitol invasion. Outside the FBI’s Washington field office,  before turning himself in, the 67-year-old claimed he and his allies were “taking down the Biden regime.”

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What are the charges?

After refusing to comply with demands to produce documents and sit for a deposition as part of that investigation, Steve Bannon  was charged with two counts of contempt of Congress. 

Each count of contempt of Congress is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $100,000.

A slew of Trump administration officials – including Bannon – defied requests and demands from Congress over the past five years with little consequence, including during an impeachment inquiry. President Barack Obama’s administration also declined to charge two of its officials who defied congressional demands.

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However, the January 6 committee got hold of him. 

“I want you guys to stay focused, stay on message,” Bannon said in remarks being livestreamed to a social media platform, reaffirming his message to take down Joe Biden. 

Hundreds of Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol and temporarily stopped Congress from confirming President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.

The indictment says Bannon didn’t communicate with the committee in any way from the time he received the subpoena on September 24 until October 7 when his lawyer sent a letter, seven hours after the documents were due.

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Bannon, who worked at the White House at the beginning of the Trump administration and currently serves as host of the conspiracy-minded “War Room” podcast, is a private citizen who “refused to appear to give testimony as required by a subpoena,” the indictment says.

When Bannon declined to appear for his deposition in October, his attorney said the former Trump adviser had been directed by a lawyer for Trump citing executive privilege not to answer questions.

With inputs from the Associated Press.