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 followed a Reuters report revealing that the FBI had subpoenaed phone records of FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles from when they were private citizens. This action was part of Smith’s probe into Trump.
In the Reuters article, Patel alleged that the FBI secretly subpoenaed his phone records “using flimsy pretexts and burying the entire process in prohibited case files designed to evade all oversight.” However, Reuters noted that it had not independently verified any of Patel’s claims.
Special Counsel Jack Smith oversaw two federal investigations related to now-President Trump. One case accused Trump of unlawfully trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, while the other focused on his retention of classified documents and alleged efforts to obstruct the Justice Department when asked to return those files.
All of the FBI employees fired on Wednesday were involved in the classified documents case. CBS News confirmed with a source familiar with the matter that Wiles’ records were reviewed as part of the documents investigation but was unable to verify whether Patel’s records were included.
Regarding the 2020 election case, known as Arctic Frost, the source added that Patel’s records were not subpoenaed.
CBS News has reached out to the FBI for comment.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/at-least-10-fbi-agents-who-worked-on-mar-a-lago-documents-case-are-fired-sources-say/
