FBI seizes former Congressman Eric Swalwell's devices in sexual misconduct investigation

The FBI stopped former US Congressman Eric Swalwell in an airport and seized his electronic devices while also raiding his home in Washington DC this weekend, as part of a federal investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against him.

After the allegations surfaced earlier this year, Swalwell dropped out of the California governor's race - where he was in the lead - and gave up his seat in the House of Representatives.

He is also under criminal investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and Los Angeles Sheriff's Department for accusations of rape and sexual assault.

Swalwell has in the past denied the allegations and his attorney has called them "fabricated".

The BBC has reached out to him for comment.

"These accusations are false, fabricated, and deeply offensive - a calculated and transparent political hit job," his attorney Sara Azari said around the time they were first reported.

Federal agents retrieved Swalwell's devices and searched his home while executing a search warrant, according to the BBC's US media partner, CBS News.

Swalwell, 45, has faced allegations from multiple women, including that he raped one victim while she was too intoxicated to respond and that he sent women unsolicited nude photographs.

A high-profile Democrat often seen on cable news criticising President Donald Trump,Swalwell resigned from Congress and ended his bid for California governor after the reports emerged and members of the House pushed to remove him. The House ethics committee launched an investigation that ended once Swalwell was no longer a member of Congress.

The White House released declassified documents from a separate FBI investigation ion Monday that revealed details of his alleged relationship with a suspected spy from China over a decade ago.

Many of the details regarding his 2015 relationship with Christine Fang were already known, and Swalwell never faced any related charges.

Multiple US media outlets, including CBS News, were told that FBI Director Kash Patel was behind a push to release the files from that investigation.