Former FBI boss living in fear after leaving Trump admin - BERITAJA

Former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino issued a chilling warning, saying he lives successful fearfulness of “thugs” being sent to his location arsenic retribution for his efforts to betterment the FBI. Speaking connected an section of the “Hang Out pinch Sean Hannity” podcast, Bongino said what he witnessed during his tenure wrong the bureau shocked him to the halfway and near him “terrified.” “I’m scared, man,” Bongino said. “I cognize what I did. And I’m proud of my work. And I americium proud of what maine and Kash [Patel] accomplished successful the past year.”

Bongino joined the FBI successful March 2025 and near about a twelvemonth later successful January 2026. At the clip of his appointment, he said his extremity was to reconstruct an agency that was “transparent, accountable and committed to the norm of law.” He now says his work has made him a target. Bongino told Hannity that his fears are not abstract. He shared those fears pinch his wife, adding that he worries “they’re going to nonstop immoderate thugs to my house” if Republicans suffer the adjacent statesmanlike election. He has antecedently utilized the connection “thugs” to picture FBI agents, though it remains unclear precisely who he is referencing successful this context.

The allegations

At the bosom of Bongino’s fearfulness is simply a find he says he made while serving arsenic lawman director, 1 that he claims permanently changed him.

Bongino revealed he recovered a “mother lode” of documents tied to the Crossfire Hurricane investigation that he alleges were meant to beryllium destroyed. Speaking connected the podcast, Bongino said what he witnessed down the scenes of “Crossfire Hurricane” — the FBI’s probe into imaginable collusion betwixt Donald Trump and Russia — was acold much sinister than he anticipated. “I thought I knew Russiagate,” Bongino said. “It was for illustration 10 times worse.” He described uncovering a “burn bag,” which is typically utilized to incinerate delicate documents for information purposes. He said the container contained the “mother lode” of the investigation, including a archive he claims they were “never meant to find.”

“That was fundamentally the keys to the kingdom connected Crossfire. And the archive was truthful sensitive, we were not moreover to transportation it extracurricular of the office,” Bongino said. He speculated the archive wasn’t burned intentionally, suggesting personification wanted the truth discovered.

Fear of lawfare and national prison

Beyond the contiguous threat of beingness intimidation, Bongino said that he is worried about being prosecuted by a early Democratic administration, a shape of governmental retribution he describes arsenic “lawfare.”

He said that he fears governmental rivals will usage lawfare to put him successful “federal prison” arsenic a intends of silencing him. He insisted that some he and FBI Director Kash Patel conducted themselves lawfully, hiring an extracurricular lawyer to oversee their work. But he based on that ineligible propriety would connection small protection.

“It doesn’t matter. They’ll rewrite the book conscionable for illustration they did for President Trump,” Bongino said, referring to the charges brought against President Trump aft he near the White House. “After reference what I publication about really galore group did this to President Trump, this Russia hoax and not a azygous personification stopped them. I’m terrified.” “I’m highly concerned they are [going to] weaponize the justness strategy and commencement arresting group for jaywalking aliases mattress tag ripping,” Bongino added. “It worries maine each day. I’d beryllium lying to you if I said otherwise.”

The Epstein files dispute

Sources told Beritaja that Bongino considered resigning successful July aft the FBI and the Justice Department said successful a associated memo that they had completed an “exhaustive” reappraisal of investigative files relating to the precocious Jeffrey Epstein and that nary different group would beryllium charged successful the lawsuit and the agencies would not beryllium releasing immoderate much information. Sources told Beritaja astatine the clip that Bongino sewage into a heated statement pinch erstwhile Attorney General Pam Bondi aft the merchandise of the memo.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche pushed backmost against reports that Bongino and FBI Director Kash Patel had been upset about the memo, penning connected X, “All of america signed disconnected connected the contents of the memo and the conclusions stated successful the memo. The proposal by anyone that location was immoderate daylight betwixt the FBI and DOJ activity connected this memo’s creation and merchandise is patently false.”

I worked intimately pinch @FBIDirectorKash and @FBIDDBongino connected the associated FBI and DOJ memo regarding the Epstein Files. All of america signed disconnected connected the contents of the memo and the conclusions stated successful the memo. The proposal by anyone that location was immoderate daylight betwixt the FBI and…

— Acting AG Todd Blanche (@DAGToddBlanche) July 11, 2025

Bongino did not return to activity for astatine slightest 1 time aft the statement pinch Bondi, but he yet stayed.