At least 10 FBI agents who worked on former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s retention of classified records after he left the White House in 2021 were fired on Wednesday, multiple sources told CBS News.
The firings came after Reuters reported that the FBI had subpoenaed records of phone calls made by FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles when they were still both private citizens as part of Smith’s probe into Trump.
The Reuters article quoted Patel, who alleged that the FBI had secretly subpoenaed his phone records “using flimsy pretexts and burying the entire process in prohibited case files designed to evade all oversight.” The Reuters article added that it had not independently verified any of Patel’s claims.
Special Counsel Jack Smith oversaw two federal probes into now-President Trump. One case alleged he unlawfully tried to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, while the other focused on his retention of classified documents and efforts to obstruct the Justice Department when it asked him to return the files.
All of the FBI employees fired on Wednesday were involved with the classified documents case.
CBS News confirmed with a source familiar with the matter that Wiles’ records were reviewed as part of the documents case, but was unable to verify whether Patel’s were. In the case involving the 2020 election, known as Arctic Frost, Patel’s records were not subpoenaed, the source added.
CBS News has reached out to the FBI for comment.
The FBI Agents Association, which represents current and former agents, condemned the firings in a statement, saying they violate FBI employees’ due process rights.
“These actions weaken the Bureau by stripping away critical expertise and destabilizing the workforce, undermining trust in leadership and jeopardizing the Bureau’s ability to meet its recruitment goals—ultimately putting the nation at greater risk,” the group said.
This is a breaking story; it will be updated.
