WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Friday ordered the transfer of 1,500 staffers out of its Washington headquarters, two sources familiar with the orders told Reuters.
Some 1,000 of the staffers would be dispersed to field offices around the country, with another 500 ordered to transfer to Huntsville, Alabama, the sources said, adding that the news was conveyed to employees at a Friday meeting.
An FBI spokesperson did not have immediate comment.
The bureau had 9,414 employees in Washington as of June 2024, with 37,478 nationwide, according to figures kept by the federal government.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the bureau, Kash Patel, was confirmed by the Senate to his role on Thursday and sworn in on Friday.
Patel takes charge as Trump-backed officials seek to put their stamp on the FBI and its parent agency, the Justice Department, challenging decades-old traditions of independence and reorienting its mission toward Trump’s core priorities.
At least 75 career Justice Department lawyers and FBI officials, who normally keep their roles from administration to administration, have either resigned, been fired or stripped of their posts in the first month of the Trump administration.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Scott Malone)
Brought to you by www.srnnews.com
