Two former FBI agents who worked the bureau’s internal investigation of the 2020 presidential election filed a federal lawsuit against FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleging they were fired solely because of their roles in the probe.
The agents, identified only as John Doe 1 and John Doe 2 in the Washington, D.C., filing obtained by Fox News says their firings came in a five-day window last fall — shortly after unredacted documents from the investigation, known internally as “Arctic Frost,” were shared with members of Congress.
Patel fired both agents in late October and early November, the lawsuit says, “without evidence” and without “internal investigation, notice, or hearing” beforehand. Both had received “exemplary” performance reviews throughout their careers at the bureau.
“Political support for President Trump is not a legal or appropriate requirement for the effective performance of plaintiffs’ respective roles within the F.B.I.,” the lawsuit states. “Accordingly, perceived lack of political support for President Trump is an impermissible basis for termination of plaintiffs’ F.B.I. employment.”
The agents contend their firings violated FBI policy, which requires cause — such as misconduct, national security concerns, or an inability to perform core duties — before a non-probationary special agent can be removed. Both are seeking reinstatement and a court declaration that their terminations were unlawful under the First and Fifth Amendments.
The two say they played brief, largely administrative roles in the Arctic Frost investigation. “In Arctic Frost, as in all other investigations to which they were assigned, Plaintiffs fully adhered to DOJ policies and procedures, including applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, and executed their law enforcement duties without bias or political motives,” the suit states.
Their lawyers also pointed to Patel’s own words. During his Senate confirmation hearing last year, Patel told senators that personnel decisions “should be based on performance and adherence to the law” and vowed agents would not be fired based on their case assignments. The lawsuit argues the firings contradict those pledges directly.
Asked about the terminations during House testimony Thursday, Patel pushed back on Democratic criticism. “There’s 36,000 people employed at this FBI,” he told lawmakers. “And I reject the notion wholeheartedly that the termination of those that were weaponizing law enforcement are the only ones that can do the mission.”
The FBI Agents’ Association, a voluntary group representing more than 14,000 active and former special agents, previously called out Patel over the dismissals. Director Patel “has disregarded the law and launched a campaign of erratic and arbitrary retribution,” the group said at the time of the firings.
“An Agent simply being assigned to an investigation and conducting it appropriately within the law should never be grounds for termination,” the FBIAA said. “FBI Agents deal in facts, and we urge Director Patel to do the same.”
