A former top aide to Kamala Harris is facing a criminal investigation for attempting to fraudulently obtain a lucrative government buyout after being placed in a Federal Trade Commission position just days before the Trump administration took office, according to authorities.
Nathaniel Segal, who previously served as Deputy Domestic Policy Advisor to then-Vice President Harris, is being investigated for allegedly forging documentation to take advantage of the “Fork in the Road” buyout program, which offers eligible federal employees benefits worth up to $200,000 to leave government service.
According to Trump administration officials who spoke with The Daily Wire, the investigation may extend beyond Segal to examine whether high-ranking officials, potentially including Harris herself and former FTC Chair Lina Khan.
Investigators want to know if Segel had been placed at the agency to evade personnel regulations and shield him from being dismissed by the incoming administration.
“The Department of Justice received a criminal referral from the FTC outlining Segal’s alleged scheme,” a Department of Justice official reportedly said, confirming the department was taking a “broad” look at the matter.
The timeline of Segal’s employment raises questions about the nature of his appointment. Senate records show he worked as Deputy Domestic Policy Advisor to Harris in her legislative branch office until January 7, 2025. He was then briefly hired by the Executive Office of the President as “Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Advisor to the Vice President” for just 11 days before being installed as Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the FTC on January 18—two days before Trump’s inauguration.
According to the officials, FTC Chair Khan ordered Segal to be placed on the payroll despite missing essential personnel documentation.
He was classified as a non-probationary employee, giving him protections typically reserved for career civil servants rather than political appointees.
The scheme allegedly began to unravel in mid-February when the FTC reportedly received information from the Executive Office of the President confirming Segal was a political appointee who did not qualify for tenured civil service protections.
When informed on February 14 that he would be classified as a probationary employee—making him potentially subject to Trump’s directive to consider layoffs for such workers—Segal claimed he had already accepted the “Fork in the Road” buyout offer, despite the program’s deadline having passed four days earlier on February 10.
When asked for proof, Segal reportedly provided only a screenshot purporting to show he had emailed the Office of Personnel Management with the required word “Resign” before the deadline. Officials said the FTC determined no such email was ever sent from its servers.
The situation came to a head on February 26 when Segal pressed the human resources department about receiving his buyout money. When a meeting was scheduled with a top agency lawyer present, Segal “got squirrelly and resigned on the spot,” according to officials.