At least ten FBI employees linked to the investigation into Donald Trump's handling of classified documents have been dismissed, according to reports from CBS News and CNN. The dismissals follow revelations that the FBI subpoenaed personal phone records of current FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles before Trump returned to office.
The subpoenas were issued during the federal investigation led by former special counsel Jack Smith into Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Patel, who was a private citizen at the time, criticised the previous FBI leadership in a statement to Reuters, calling the subpoenas 'outrageous and deeply alarming' and accusing them of government overreach under the Biden administration.
Smith's investigation secured indictments in 2023 against Trump for illegally retaining classified documents and plotting to overturn the 2020 election. However, both cases were dropped after Trump won the 2024 election, citing a justice department policy against prosecuting a sitting president. Smith has said he believes the findings would have led to criminal charges had Trump not returned to the White House.
This is not the first firing under Patel's tenure. In September, three former senior officials sued Patel and the federal government for wrongful termination after being fired for investigating Trump. In November, another official with 27 years of service was dismissed after Patel reportedly became angered over press reports about his use of a government plane for personal travel.
