FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino officially resigned from the bureau on Saturday, hours after President Donald Trump confirmed that Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro had been taken into US custody.
Responding to a post on X, Bongino praised Maduro’s capture, saying it was “a busy last day on the job.”
“Tomorrow I return to civilian life. It’s been an incredible year thanks to the leadership and decisiveness of President Trump.”
Bongino said that it was “an honor of a lifetime” to work beside FBI Director Kash Patel, adding “See you on the other side.”
It was a busy last day on the job. This will be my last post on this account.
Tomorrow I return to civilian life. It’s been an incredible year thanks to the leadership and decisiveness of President Trump.
It was the honor of a lifetime to work with Director Patel, and to serve… https://t.co/ETUqiYXvLH— Dan Bongino (@FBIDDBongino) January 4, 2026
Bongino announced in mid-December that he would be leaving the FBI in January.
In response President Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Dec. 17 that Bongino had done a “great job,” but “I think he wants to go back to his show,” referring to Bongino’s podcast.
Patel also confirmed Bongino’s retirement announcement on X Saturday night – after having previously calling him “the best partner I could’ve asked for in helping restore this FBI.”
“He not only completed his mission—he far exceeded it. We will miss him but I’m thankful he accepted the call to serve.”
Dan is the best partner I could’ve asked for in helping restore this FBI. He brought critical reforms to make the organization more efficient, led the successful Summer Heat op, served as the people’s voice for transparency, and delivered major breakthroughs in long unsolved… https://t.co/o8wZOUnojP
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) December 17, 2025
As the Epoch Times notes further, Bongino highlighted some statistics of the FBI’s operations over the past year in a post on Dec. 30, 2025, noting the bureau had made more than 50,000 arrests—including more than 30,000 that were for violent crimes—had seized more than 2,000 kilograms (4,400 pounds) of fentanyl, and increased arrests for “Nihilistic Violent Extremism” by 490 percent.
The United States also saw a significant drop in the national murder rate over the past year, and the FBI located more than 6,000 child victims, an increase of 22 percent, Bongino added.
Bongino’s tenure at the FBI also saw some infighting with the Department of Justice, the bureau’s parent agency, over its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files after Bongino had spent considerable time on his podcast demanding answers about the now-deceased sex offender and his 2019 death, which was officially ruled a suicide.
Bongino wrote a post on X in late July 2025 that said the FBI was “committed to stamping out public corruption and the political weaponization of both law enforcement and intelligence operations,” but that what he learned conducting investigations “into these aforementioned matters, has shocked me down to my core.”
“We cannot run a Republic like this. I’ll never be the same after learning what I’ve learned,” Bongino said at the time, but did not elaborate.
Earlier that month, Trump had dismissed reports of friction between Bongino and others at the FBI and Justice Department over the release of the Epstein files, telling reporters on Air Force One that Bongino’s a “very good guy” and that “he’s in good shape.”
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