Dan Bongino to leave FBI early next year, MS NOW reports
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino says he plans to leave his post early next yearMS NOW reported On Wednesday, eight people were cited for providing information about his account.
Bongino, the FBI’s No. 2 official under Director Kash Patel, also told confidants he would not return to the bureau’s headquarters this month, these people said.
He is considering announcing his departure on Friday, four people who spoke to MS NOW said.
Asked by MS NOW about his plans, Bongino refused to confirm or deny reports of his departure, but added: “Print whatever you want. Nobody believes you anyway. Thank you.”
The FBI declined CNBC’s request for comment on the report.
Bongino, a former police officer and Secret Service agent, was chosen by President Donald Trump for the high-profile law enforcement post despite having no prior FBI experience.
A fixture in conservative media, Bongino’s public discussion of various conspiracy theories resurfaced after he joined the government.
Bongino as a citizen reportedly He suggested that the planting of pipe bombs in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, was an “inside job.”
Earlier this month, Bongino took a victory lap when federal agents arrested Brian Cole Jr. after a nearly five-year search and charged him with installing the devices.
When asked by Fox News’ Sean Hannity how his past comments squared with his past claims about pipe bombs, Bongino said he “has been paid for his views in the past” and that “one day I’ll get back into that space.”
“That’s not what I’m paid to do right now. I’m paid to be your assistant principal, and we base investigations on facts,” he said.
Bongino has also previously questioned official statements regarding the circumstances surrounding Jeffrey Epstein’s death. The wealthy financier and notorious sex offender hanged himself while in prison in 2019.
As an FBI official, Bongino said there was no doubt that Epstein died by suicide.
“I reviewed the case. Jeffrey Epstein killed himself. There is no evidence to the contrary in the case file.” wrote to x In May.
In July, the FBI released a memo concluding that Epstein died by suicide and that his rumored “client list” did not exist.
The memo sparked outrage among members of Trump’s MAGA movement, where conspiracy theories about Epstein have proliferated for years. Shortly thereafter, Bongino and Attorney General Pam Bondi angrily confronted each other at the White House. According to the report of The New York Times.
Friday, when Bongino intends to announce his departure, is also the deadline for the Trump administration to comply with bipartisan legislation ordering the release of government files on the Epstein investigations.
