FBI Subpoenaed Kash Patel Phone Records While He Was Private Citizen, Report Reveals

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief

WASHINGTON (Worthy News) – The FBI obtained phone records belonging to its current director, Kash Patel, during the Biden administration while he was still a private citizen, according to multiple reports confirmed Wednesday.

Sources told Just The News and Fox News that the subpoenas were issued in 2022 as part of the federal investigation into President Donald Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. The bureau also obtained phone records in 2023 for Susie Wiles, who now serves as White House chief of staff.

Patel sharply criticized the move, calling it an example of federal overreach by prior FBI leadership.

“It is outrageous and deeply alarming that the previous FBI leadership secretly subpoenaed my own phone records — along with those of now White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles — using flimsy pretexts and burying the entire process in prohibited case files designed to evade all oversight,” Patel told Fox News.

Reuters first reported the subpoenas, noting they were issued while Special Counsel Jack Smith was investigating Trump’s handling of classified documents and his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results. Smith later brought felony charges against Trump in 2023, though the election interference case was dismissed after Trump’s re-election under Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president. Trump has denied wrongdoing in both cases.

According to Reuters, the FBI located the records in files labeled “Prohibited.” Patel said he has since ended the bureau’s ability to use that file designation.

Separately, Fox News reported that FBI agents in 2023 recorded a phone call between Wiles and her attorney. Officials said the attorney consented to the recording, but Wiles herself was not informed.

The developments come amid internal turmoil at the bureau. At least 10 FBI employees were fired Wednesday, according to Fox News. The FBI Agents Association condemned the terminations, warning they could undermine morale and operational effectiveness.

“These actions weaken the Bureau by stripping away critical expertise and destabilizing the workforce,” the association said in a statement.

Special Counsel Smith previously testified that phone records were used to verify timelines related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and maintained that investigators followed all legal requirements in obtaining them.

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