Nine Fired FBI Employees Sue Kash Patel, Alleging Retaliation Over Trump Investigations

Nine fired FBI employees, including agents and analysts with counterintelligence experience, sued FBI Director Kash Patel, Attorney General Todd Blanche, the FBI and the Justice Department on Oct. 15. The suit says they were fired in February 2026 -- days before the US entered its war with Iran -- "not for any cause or any legitimate reason, but only to satisfy the president's personal vendetta," and that no internal investigation or disciplinary process preceded the firings.

The complaint alleges Patel gave false testimony to Congress in March 2026 when he said the firings followed internal investigations, and says one plaintiff helped sign the affidavit for the Mar-a-Lago search. It calls the administration's claimed authority to fire without cause "an invention of the current administration."

The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The administration has generally argued the president can remove any executive-branch employee at any time without stating reasons. The plaintiffs' attorneys say the suit will "prove their unlawful dismissal."