By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former FBI acting director Brian Driscoll and two other former senior officials who were fired without cause last month sued the Trump administration on Wednesday, alleging they were dismissed in a “campaign of retribution” that targeted officials viewed as insufficiently loyal.
The lawsuit alleges that FBI Director Kash Patel said he had been ordered to fire anyone who had worked on a criminal investigation against Donald Trump.
“The FBI tried to put the president in jail and he hasn’t forgotten it,” Patel told Driscoll, according to the lawsuit.
Steve Jensen, the former assistant director of the Washington field office, and Spencer Evans, the former top official in the Las Vegas field office, are also plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; editing by Andy Sullivan, Chris Reese and David Gregorio)