‘I don’t regret’: Kash Patel opens up on row over leadership, why he announced wrong arrest after Charlie Kirk’s assassination

Kash Patel says he does not regret announcing the wrong arrest in the Charlie Kirk shooting.

FBI director Kash Patel Monday addressed the controversy surrounding his leadership as Patel has been under fire for several ‘missteps’ in connection with the Charlie Kirk assassination case. Hours after Charlie Kirk was shot, Patel announced on social media that a suspect was in custody, only to announce later that the subject was released after investigation. This triggered a major row as to why the FBI director needed to announce the arrest of the suspect in the first place if the investigation was still going on. Patel was called an ‘amateur’ for jumping the gun. Amid calls for his resignation, President Donald Trump praised FBI and Kash Patel’s leadership, though the inside chatter is that Trump is not very enthusiastic about Patel and the Charlie Kirk issue is not the only issue — Patel’s disagreement with Attorney General Pam Bondi on the Epstein issue was the starting point, they said.

‘FBI’s job is not only to manhunt the actual suspect’

Kash Patel said FBI’s job is not only to manhunt the actual suspect who did the killing or suspects, but also to eliminate targets, eliminate subjects who are not involved in the process. “Could I have worded it a little better in the heat of the moment? Sure. But do I regret putting it out? Absolutely not. I was telling the world what the FBi was doing as we were doing, and I am continuing to do that. I challenge anyone out there to find a director that has been more transparent and more willing to work with the media in a high-profile case or any other case than we have,” Patel said. “The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody. Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi. We will provide updates when able,” Patel posted hours after Charlie Kirk’s shooting.“The subject in custody has been released after an interrogation by law enforcement. Our investigation continues and we will continue to release information in interest of transparency,” Patel followed his earlier post with this announcement.