'This time, it's not a cover-up': FBI director Kash Patel promises ‘truckloads' of files will be made public, says 'give us a week'

Time of India

18-05-2025

FBI bosses Kash Patel and Dan Bongino promise 'truckloads' of files will be made public
A wave of new disclosures could be on the horizon, according to
FBI Director Kash Patel
. In an appearance on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures, he told host Maria Bartiromo that the American public is about to see a significant release of long-hidden documents.
Patel said the material relates to both the
Trump-Russia investigation
, known as
Crossfire Hurricane
, and the
January 6 Capitol breach
. According to Patel, the documents will be made public within two weeks, promising what he called 'a wave of transparency.'
In a fiery exchange on Sunday Morning Futures, Patel and deputy director
Dan Bongino
promised that long-sought accountability is coming.
'Just give us about a week or two,' Patel said, hinting that revelations surrounding 'Crossfire Hurricane,' the
FBI
's original probe into alleged Trump-Russia collusion, will soon surface.
The interview marked the first time the two men, both newly appointed, publicly detailed the extent of the evidence they've uncovered.
'They hid it in rooms where people weren't supposed to look'
Patel, who was previously the lead Russiagate investigator for the House Intelligence Committee, said the FBI's former leadership deliberately misused the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) process and buried critical material. 'They bastardised the process, they withheld and hid documentation and put it in rooms where people weren't supposed to look,' he said.
He specifically named former FBI officials
James Comey
, Andrew McCabe, and
Peter Strzok
, claiming they rigged the 2016 election process by lying to federal courts and hiding exculpatory evidence. 'That's what broke the FBI,' Patel said, 'and we're here now to clean it up.'
Documents sent to Congress, including on January 6 riots
Patel and Bongino confirmed that they've already begun sending batches of unredacted documents to Congress. The material includes what they call 'truckloads' of information on the January 6 Capitol riot and previously hidden files from the Russiagate saga.
Bongino, a former Secret Service agent, insisted that this is not just political theatre.
'We've been personally briefed extensively on every single detail, nugget, tendril of this case,' he said, referring to ongoing Trump assassination attempt investigations. 'One case is already in court. If the 'there' was there, we would've told you. But in some cases—it's just not.'
'This time, it's not a cover-up'
Bongino said that years of corruption might take longer to uncover. 'We've been here two months,' he said. 'This is a $12 billion organisation with 38,000 people. To expect us to dismantle eight years of corruption overnight is unrealistic. You want it done right or done quickly?'
Bartiromo pushed hard for results, saying, 'Come on, Director, with all due respect, we've been talking about this for a long time.
There's been no accountability. Comey and Strzok have media gigs. They're doing fine.'
Patel acknowledged the criticism but pointed out legal barriers: 'We weren't in the FBI when the five-year statute of limitations was still in play. We'll prosecute what we can—but a lot of it is now time-barred.'
On Epstein, fentanyl, and Letitia James
In another segment, Patel said he believed Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide, based on his experience in the prison system.
'You know a suicide when you see one,' he said. Bongino backed him up: 'I've seen the whole file. He killed himself.'
Patel also claimed all fentanyl coming into the US is entering via the northern border from Canada. On the legal front, he confirmed a mortgage fraud case involving New York Attorney General Letitia James is underway, calling it 'a case of great public importance.'
Patel said the FBI under his leadership would not spare wrongdoers regardless of political affiliation. 'We don't prejudge any case. If you broke the law, we're going to investigate you.'