FBI Director Kash Patel says agents have recovered phones once used by Dr. Anthony Fauci during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a discovery Patel called a “breakthrough” in the bureau’s ongoing investigation into Fauci’s role in the crisis, The Hill reported.
“We just had a great breakthrough this week on Fauci,” Patel told host Joe Rogan in Friday’s episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience.” “They had always been looking for phones and devices he used while he was back in Trump one during COVID, and nobody had found it until two days ago.”
The discovery, Patel said, could help uncover new information about how the federal government responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, he cautioned against premature conclusions.
“Everybody listening to us shouldn’t jump to the conclusion everything’s in there,” he said. “Maybe it’s deleted, maybe it’s not. But at least we found it. And at least now we can tell people that we have been looking, because it is of public importance.”
President Donald Trump and his allies have accused Fauci, the infectious disease expert who advised Trump on the COVID-19 pandemic, of misleading the public about the pandemic’s origins and the effectiveness of certain government measures.
“We think that there was definite foul play, but my opinion is irrelevant,” Patel said. “It only matters what I can show the American people and prove.”
Patel added that the investigation must be handled carefully.
“That’s what we’re working on. That’s why I don’t run out there and say, Look, we’re gonna get this guy. We’re 100% gonna get him,” he said.
Fauci has faced mounting scrutiny from Republican lawmakers, including Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who last year said Fauci should be jailed over alleged ties to lab research in China. Paul and others claim Fauci’s involvement in gain-of-function research contributed to the COVID-19 outbreak and accuse him of causing “between 10 [million] and 20 million” deaths.
Fauci testified before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic in 2024, maintaining that he followed available science and never covered up a potential “lab leak.” He argued government interventions saved lives, stating another million Americans may have died without them, though he admitted “how long you kept them going is debatable.”
Before leaving office, former President Joe Biden granted Fauci a sweeping presidential pardon, shielding him from prosecution for any actions related to his roles from Jan. 1, 2014, through the end of Biden’s term. The pardon drew swift condemnation from Trump.
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