(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Former Justice Department lawyer Jessica Aber, who was the top prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia, was reportedly found dead in her home at the age of 43 by Virginia authorities on Saturday.
As U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Aber, 43, was in charge of a jurisdiction right next to Washington DC—making her responsible for numerous politically charged cases, including ones with links to a variety of domestic and international intelligence agencies.
Given some of the high-profile and controversial cases Aber oversaw, the 43-year-old’s death sparked some speculation that foul play was involved.
But police in Alexandria, Virginia reportedly say that Aber likely died of natural causes. Her family reportedly says the same.
“Her family reiterated that it is believed Aber died from natural causes and said she ‘suffered from epilepsy and epileptic seizures for many years,’” ABC reported Wednesday.
“The case will remain open until the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner rules on the manner and cause of death.”
Her family added that they expect to have more info in the “coming weeks.”
Reporter Ford Fischer noted that Aber handled the case of Russell Richardson Vane IV, the former Pentagon analyst who joined a militia and promoted terrorism. Vane was arrested after he was publicly expelled by his militia, but he was only sentenced to “time served”—despite the FBI having found a deadly poison in his home, and despite the fact that he seemingly stole classified documents from his workplace.
Others pointed to the fact that Aber helped extradite an Israeli national who was helping facilitate the illegal entry of Israeli citizens into the U.S.
RIP, patriot https://t.co/EHsLjHo4nU
— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) March 23, 2025
The mainstream media, meanwhile, blamed the usual culprit: Russia.
“In November 2024, a Virginia-based company and two of its senior executives, were accused [by Aber] of running ‘three different schemes to illegally transship sensitive American technology to Russia,’ including sending equipment to a Russian telecommunications company linked to the Kremlin and Russia’s notorious FSB security agency,” Newsweek reported.
Aber resigned effective Jan. 20. It’s not clear where she worked after that.
