James Dennehy, who headed the FBI’s New York Field Office, says he was forced to leave the agency.
The former Marine’s ouster on Monday comes a month after he told colleagues to “dig in” when the Trump administration demanded information on MAGA loyalists who stormed the U.S. Capital in 2021 to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral win over Trump.
NBC News said Dennehy told colleagues in a letter that he was instructed to file his retirement paperwork Friday and followed orders.
“I was not given a reason for this decision,” Dennehy said.
Had he not left on his own, Dennehy would’ve been fired, according to the letter posted online by NBC News.
Since taking power in January, the Trump administration has looked to reshape the bureau, which many of President Trump’s supporters feel unfairly investigated him and his followers.
Right-wing podcaster and Long Island native Kash Patel was made the new FBI Director in last week. Former Fox News personality and podcaser Dan Bongino was named FBI Deputy Director a short time later.
Dennehy wrote an email to his staff last month telling them he planned to “dig in” as Trump officials moved to rid the department of “good people” who did their jobs in accordance with the law.
That letter followed the dismissal of several FBI veterans at the start of the 47th President’s second term in office.
Resistance from Dennehy and other high-ranking FBI officials was believed to have kept thousands of agency employees who worked on the Jan. 6 investigation from being cut loose, according to NBC News.
The letter he sent to his FBI associates on Monday reportedly expressed an “immense feeling of pride” for his having worked with people he believes will continue to “do the right thing for the right reasons.”
Trump said during a Washington D.C. press conference with Japan’s Prime Minister in early February that he planned to fire FBI agents who worked on the Capitol uprising case.
“We had some corrupt agents and those people are gone or they will be gone,” he vowed, according to NBC News. “And it will be done quickly and very surgically.”
There’s no indication Dennehy is accused of corruption. He joked Monday that one thing he won’t miss is the daily commute to his Lower Manhattan office.
