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Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) in Washington DC on March 20, 2020.Reuters

The DoJ has dropped its probe into 3 US senators who dumped stock work millions shortly before the coronavirus market crash

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The Department of Justice is dropping its probe into three US senators accused of insider trading over stock sales made after they received closed-door briefings on the coronavirus. 

The DoJ will not be filing any charges against Republican Sens Kelly Loeffler of Georgia and James Inhofe of Oklahoma, as well as Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California.

The Wall Street Journal broke the news of the dropped investigations on Tuesday.

It said that Loeffler, Inhofe, and Feinstein all said that the sales, in late January and early February, were made by investment managers acting without their direct input.

According to Forbes, Loeffler's sales were valued between $1.275 million to $3.1 million, Inhofe's at about $400,000 and Feinstein's between $1.5 million and $6 million.

The sales came when markets were reaching a peak, towards the end of a years-long rally.

It ended in late February and turned into a sustained crash through March, propelled by the increasing spread of the coronavirus pandemic, and a simultaneous crash in global oil prices.

The investigations were made under the 2012 "Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act," which bans elected officials from making trades on the basis of information that isn't in the public sphere. 

Officials continue to investigate Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina. 

His sales, in late February were worth up to $1.72 million, reported Propublica. Much of the investments were in hotel chains Wyndham and Extended Stay America.

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U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) (C), flanked by Senator John McCain (R-AZ) (L) and Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) (R), speaks at a news conference to talk about new legislation to restrict prisoner transfers from the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC January 13, 2015Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

According to the WSJ report, Burr had a more direct role in his trades than the other senators.

However, the report says Burr claims he made the trades based on TV news reports about the coronavirus, rather than any information he had because of his role as a Senator.

Earlier in the month Burr's phone was seized by the FBI. He has temporarily stepped down as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee while the investigation is being conducted. 

Loeffler is the only one of the three senators who the DoJ is no longer probing who is up for reelection in November.