ISTANBUL

The FBI on Thursday fired Aaron Tapp, a special agent who once oversaw public corruption cases, including one that became part of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into President Donald Trump, CNN reported, citing two sources familiar with the situation.

His removal appears to be another example of the Trump administration’s ongoing campaign of retribution.

Tapp, who most recently served as special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio office, had previously been deputy assistant director of the Criminal Investigative Division at FBI headquarters.

In that role, he supervised investigations into Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, including one called Arctic Frost.

That probe centered on the fake electors scheme, in which Trump allies tried to submit false electoral votes from states won by Joe Biden.

Recently, Republican lawmakers released FBI documents detailing the Arctic Frost investigation and accused Smith and FBI leaders of political bias for using grand jury subpoenas to collect phone records from nine GOP members of Congress.

The records, obtained in 2023, covered four days surrounding the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, but did not include the contents of the calls. Smith has rejected claims of political motivation, saying the subpoenas were standard investigative measures.

According to his FBI biography, Tapp had been with the Bureau for over 20 years.

In addition, three other senior FBI officials who were fired in August are now suing FBI Director Kash Patel and the Trump administration, alleging their dismissals were part of a politically motivated purge driven by MAGA-aligned social media pressure.

The plaintiffs, Brian Driscoll, briefly acting FBI director; Steven Jensen, assistant director in charge of the Washington field office; and Spencer Evans, head of the Las Vegas office, claim Patel politicized the FBI to protect his position.

“Patel not only acted unlawfully but deliberately chose to prioritize politicizing the FBI over protecting the American people,” the lawsuit states.

During their Senate confirmation hearings, Patel and other officials denied any intention to pursue political retribution, even though Trump had repeatedly promised such actions during his campaign rallies.