Gambiaj.com – (WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES) – Nine former FBI agents have sued the US Justice Department, alleging they were unlawfully dismissed because of their work on the criminal investigation into President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
The lawsuit, filed on Thursday, accuses FBI Director Kash Patel of terminating the agents without legitimate cause, an internal investigation or disciplinary proceedings, arguing that the dismissals were politically motivated and intended to satisfy Trump’s personal grievances.
The agents’ lawyers said their “fate was sealed by virtue of simply having worked on an investigation into Trump’s wrongdoing”, citing Attorney General Todd Blanche’s reported remarks about having “cleaned house” of personnel involved in criminal investigations of the president.
The plaintiffs — Jennifer Bacon, Zach Feldman, Gilbert Granados, Catherine Herrera, Harrison Kaufman, Jeremy Linton, Erin Matanic, Danielle Ray and Rachel Vaccaro — argue that they were dismissed without prior notice, a hearing or an opportunity to appeal.
According to the lawsuit, Patel justified the firings by invoking Article II of the US Constitution, which establishes the powers of the presidency.
The attorneys contend that the administration is using this constitutional provision as a pretext to remove federal employees perceived to be politically disloyal to Trump.
“The firings did not follow any internal investigation or disciplinary process within the FBI,” the lawsuit states, adding that the dismissals were allegedly carried out to serve the president’s personal vendetta.
The nine agents had worked on the Mar-a-Lago investigation as well as other high-profile cases, including the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and the attempted assassination of Trump in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
The Mar-a-Lago investigation followed an FBI search of Trump’s Florida estate, where more than 300 documents bearing classified markings were found. Trump subsequently faced charges under the Espionage Act for allegedly unlawfully retaining classified records, as well as an obstruction of justice charge linked to allegations that he sought to conceal documents from investigators.
The criminal case was later dismissed by a federal judge before it went to trial.
The lawsuit also raises questions about Patel’s conduct in the period surrounding the agents’ dismissals. It notes that the FBI director faced criticism after videos emerged showing him celebrating with the US men’s Olympic hockey team in Italy following its Winter Olympics victory.
The filing alleges that Patel’s conduct became politically damaging at a time when his position was reportedly under scrutiny. It further argues that his activities in Italy shortly before the US military action against Iran raised questions about his involvement in national security planning.
Another allegation concerns information Patel reportedly provided to Reuters about subpoenas seeking phone records in the classified documents investigation.
The lawsuit claims that the disclosures may have violated a gag order associated with the Mar-a-Lago case. It also cites a Reuters report in which three unnamed FBI sources allegedly linked the agents’ dismissals to revelations about the phone-record subpoenas.
“In the article, three unnamed FBI ‘sources’ linked the Plaintiffs’ terminations to the ‘revelations’ about the phone records subpoenas in the classified documents case,” the lawsuit states.
The legal action now challenges the administration’s authority to dismiss the agents under its interpretation of presidential powers and seeks to establish that their terminations were unlawful.
The allegations contained in the lawsuit have not been established in court.
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