FBI director deployed Swat team to protect country singer girlfriend
FBI Director Kash Patel has deployed elite SWAT agents to protect his country singer girlfriend at public events, sparking fierce criticism over taxpayer-funded perks.
The director of the FBI is facing questions about the deployment of a Swat team to protect his country singer girlfriend in a deepening row over his enjoyment of taxpayer-funded perks.
Kash Patel sent two members of the elite team, trained to free hostages and carry out armed raids but rarely used for the protection of individuals, to defend Alexis Wilkins when she was invited to sing the national anthem at the annual convention of the National Rifle Association this year.
When it became apparent there was little threat, the agents left, prompting Patel to “rip into” the team’s commander, according to The New York Times.
The use of the agents has been criticised by officials because of the mission’s unusual purpose and a resultant lack of legal clarity on the agents’ liability over the use of lethal force.
The story is the latest to prompt scrutiny of Patel’s relationship with Wilkins. It emerged this year that Patel, 45, had travelled in his private FBI jet to see Wilkins, 27, whom he describes as his “partner in life”, perform at a wrestling event. He reacted furiously to the story, saying it was “beyond pathetic”, and is said to have sacked the longstanding FBI official in charge of the agency’s aviation over the unflattering coverage - even though records of the flight were publicly available.
The FBI said Patel was mandated to use the jet to attend private events. However, Patel had criticised his predecessor, Christopher Wray, for his use of it, saying in 2023 he was “jetting off on out [sic] tax payer dollars while dodging accountability for the implosion of the FBI on his watch”.
Christopher O’Leary, a former senior FBI agent, said Patel’s “abusive and excessive use” of the jet, along with “the assignment of Swat-qualified special agents to guard his girlfriend”, were “indicative of his lack of leadership experience, judgment and humility”.
After reports that Patel could be sacked, President Trump defended the FBI director, posing for a picture beside him in the Oval Office.
“This story is completely made up,” Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, wrote on X. “In fact, when this fake news [was] published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI director Kash Patel. I read the headline to the president and he laughed. He said: ‘What? That’s totally false. Come on Kash, let’s take a picture to show them you’re doing a great job!’ Do not believe the fake news!”
Wilkins describes herself on her website as someone who “speaks the truth” and “owns who she is” with her “unapologetic storytelling, cowboy-like leaning and definitive pull from the past”. She says she is “no stranger to the big stage” and a “force to be reckoned with”.
THE TIMES
To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register
Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout