FBI Agent Steve Friend, Who Blew Whistle on Jan. 6 Investigation, Is Fired From Agency After Veiled Threat to Director Kash Patel

A former FBI agent who was suspended under the Biden administration and was reinstated under President Trump to much fanfare has been ousted again, The Post has learned.

FBI whistleblower Steve Friend issued what was deemed to be a threat against Director Kash Patel on a podcast hosted by ex-FBI agent Kyle Seraphin last week and that outburst helped cost him his job on Saturday, bureau insiders told the Post.

Friend gained fame for claiming he was wrongly placed on leave by ex-FBI Director Chris Wray for exposing problems with the Jan. 6 investigation that saw roughly 1,600 defendants prosecuted for the 2021 attack on the Capitol. He went on to become an author, media commentator — and onetime ally of Patel.

Suspended in August 2022 and having resigned in February 2023, Friend returned to the FBI’s payroll on Oct. 10. However, he hadn’t been performing duties at the FBI in Jacksonville, as he had not yet been cleared for a background check, an issue that can arise in whistleblower cases.

While pedaling a conspiracy theory that Patel falsely arrested alleged DC pipe bomber Brian Cole Jr. as part of an elaborate “cover up,” Friend made disturbing remarks about bringing “God’s wrath” to punish him. (Read more from “FBI Agent Steve Friend, Who Blew Whistle on Jan. 6 Investigation, Is Fired From Agency After Veiled Threat to Director Kash Patel” HERE)