Dan Bongino, the Deputy Director of the FBI, officially announced his resignation on Wednesday.

Through a statement, Bongino revealed his decision to step down, stating, “I will be departing my role with the FBI in January.”

Expressing gratitude, Bongino said, “I am thankful to President Trump, AG Bondi, and Director Patel for this meaningful service opportunity. Above all, I appreciate my fellow Americans for allowing me the honor to serve you.”

He concluded his message with a heartfelt, “God bless America, and all those who defend Her.”

This announcement closely followed President Trump’s comments to reporters beneath Air Force One on Wednesday, hinting at Bongino’s forthcoming exit.

The President remarked, “Dan did an excellent job. I believe he’s eager to return to his show,” alluding to Bongino’s previous career as a conservative commentator.

Bongino’s departure comes as the manhunt for the Brown University shooter continues and the deadline for Congress to release the Epstein Files looms on Friday.

Authorities announced on Wednesday that they are now searching for a second suspect connected to Saturday’s massacre that left two dead and nine injured. 

Dan Bongino, FBI deputy director, speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington

Attorney General Pam Bondi (L), FBI Director Kash Patel (C) and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino hold a news conference about the January 6th pipe bomber at the Department of Justice on December 4, 2025 in Washington, DC

The former podcaster and Fox News host gave up a lucrative media career earlier this year to join the Trump administration.

However, his brief tenure was marked by a public ambivalence about the role, as well as internal clashes with colleagues including Attorney General Pam Bondi over her handling of the Epstein files.

In May, Bongino candidly admitted that the demands of the role were straining the relationship with his wife, Paula, 50, who lives in Florida with their two daughters. The pair have been married since around 2003.

‘I gave up everything for this. I mean, you know, my wife is struggling,’ he told Fox & Friends. ‘I stare at these four walls all day in DC, you know, by myself, divorced from my wife. Not divorced, but I mean, separated. And it’s hard.’

He said he didn’t didn’t enjoy the work, while noting that he was proud to serve the president.

‘People ask me all the time, “Do you like it?” I say, “No, I don’t.”‘ He added that it was challenging for his family but noted that ‘the president didn’t ask me to do this to like it.’

A major flashpoint came in July, when Bongino clashed with Bondi over the the Justice Department’s conclusion that no Epstein ‘client list’ existed – contradicting years of theories that he had promoted on his show.

Reports at the time described a tense stand-off where Bondi accused Bongino of leaking on her. He took days off work, considered resigning amid the furor and told allies that the AG had ‘overpromised and underdelivered.’

The controversy highlighted a tension between his past as a right-wing podcaster and now as a top law enforcement official.

Following the January 6 pipe bomb arrest that the FBI announced earlier this month, Bongino revealed to Sean Hannity how the role had changed his interpretation of high-profile investigations.

‘I was paid in the past, Sean, for my opinions … one day I’ll be back in that space, but that’s not what I’m paid for now. I’m paid to be your deputy director, and we base investigations on facts,’ Bongino told the Fox anchor after being asked about a November 2024 episode where he claimed the pipe bomb was a set-up.

Bongino’s departure heaps more pressure on Kash Patel amid the mounting outrage over the Brown University shooting.

The FBI boss on Sunday prematurely announced that a suspect in the mass shooting had been arrested – only for him to be set free hours later.

The manhunt entered its fifth day on Wednesday as Patel was slammed for the latest blunder, echoing the prior mishandling of the Charlie Kirk assassination investigation.

Prior to becoming the FBI’s Deputy Director, Bongino ran his own media company, publishing The Bongino Report.

Before that, he hosted The Dan Bongino Show on Rumble after a run hosting Unfiltered with Dan Bongino on Fox News until April 2023.

Sources told the Daily Mail in September that the deputy director was already ‘halfway out the door’ after he clashed with others over the Justice Department and FBI’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Other news outlets, like the Daily Beast, cite sources who claim Trump is poised to make Bongino the ‘fall guy’ for the Epstein debacle, which nearly a year into the administration is still plaguing the president.

The reports swirled as Democrats on the House Oversight Committee put forth another small-scale release of Epstein files on Friday.

The 19 images are part of 95,000 the committee says it is reviewing and include images of Trump, former US President Bill Clinton, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, actor and director Woody Allen, Prince Andrew, Bill Gates and others.

The images help serve as a reminder that Democrats and Republicans are working to get more details out about Epstein and link familiar faces to the crimes – though there is no suggestion that those in the pictures are implicated in wrongdoing.

Bongino fueled Epstein conspiracy theories as a far-right podcaster and political commentator before he joined the FBI as a deputy in March 2025.

Reports emerged over the summer and into the fall of him clashing with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the Epstein files strategy and some sources claim he refused to show up to work on time in the midst of the fallout.

After the assassination of Charlie Kirk in September, tensions rose even more with one FBI insider telling the Daily Mail that Bongino would leave if Bondi kept hernjob.

‘Do I think Dan is going to stay? No,’ the insider said at the time, indicating it would likely be Bongino’s decision to move on.

It came after the DOJ announced that the FBI would be getting a second deputy director with former Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who would serve alongside Bongino.

Insiders told the Daily Mail that the unprecedented move to have co-deputies at the bureau signals Bongino’s days are numbered.

An FBI spokesperson did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s request earlier on Wednesday for comment on the latest reporting about Bongino’s future in the administration.

There has been a lot of chatter in Washington, DC over which officials are on Trump’s radar to be fired.

Some had claimed it’s Bongino’s boss – FBI Director Kash Patel who might take the fall for the Epstein files debacle.