FBI’s NY chief, who pushed back on inquiry into January 6 probe, retires

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By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The head of the FBI’s New York office has retired, an email from the outgoing official showed on Monday, weeks after he pushed back on a request by President Donald Trump’s administration to provide a list of agents who worked on the investigation into the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

James Dennehy, the assistant FBI director in charge of the New York office, served in a progression of roles at the bureau over the past 23 years.

Dennehy took a stand against a Trump administration directive to gather the names of all agents who worked on the January 6 investigation, the largest in Justice Department history.

“Late Friday, I was informed that I needed to put my retirement papers in today, which I just did. I was not given a reason for this decision,” Dennehy said in the email seen by Reuters.

He said in a separate January email that agents were “in the middle of a battle of our own, as good people are being walked out of the FBI and others are being targeted because they did their jobs in accordance with the law and FBI policy.”

The FBI declined to comment. Dennehy could not be reached for immediate comment.

Two people familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly, had earlier told Reuters of Dennehy’s retirement.

NBC first reported the news on Monday.

Dennehy’s missive followed a request by Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove to FBI staff to report on any work they performed on the investigation into the January 6 attack.

Trump appointees have moved swiftly in his first weeks in office to remake the U.S. Justice Department and the FBI, which Trump says were used against him in his four years out of power.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Scott Malone and Lincoln Feast)