Exclusive: FBI investigation into Kash Patel was more extensive than previously reported
Source: Reuters
March 24, 2026 6:02 AM EDT Updated 1 hour ago
who is now the FBI director but was then a private citizen, included demands for more than two years of phone records, text messages and financial information, according to two grand jury subpoenas and nondisclosure orders viewed by Reuters.
Special Counsel Jack Smiths team issued subpoenas to Verizon Communications (VZ.N) for Patels communications at the time when they were investigating whether President Donald Trump had interfered with the 2020 election and had hidden classified documents at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort. Reuters could not determine the nature of Smith's investigation of Patel and what allegations of wrongdoing, if any, were being probed at the time.
The new records regarding Patel were authorized for release by Republican Senators Charles Grassley, Ron Johnson and Ted Cruz ahead of a subcommittee hearing Tuesday on the Smith investigation, which was code-named Arctic Frost.
Smith was appointed special counsel in 2022. Reuters previously reported that Smiths team had subpoenaed the phone records of Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles while they were private citizens but involved in Trumps campaign to reclaim the presidency in 2024.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/fbi-investigation-into-kash-patel-was-more-extensive-than-previously-reported-2026-03-24/