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Lionel Messi tackled to the ground during game after his famed bodyguard was not allowed on sidelines
Soccer legend Lionel Messi was tackled to the ground during a friendly in Puerto Rico on Thursday
It happened around the 88th minute of an exhibition tour match. Several fans jumped onto the pitch at Juan Ramón Loubriel stadium. Messi's team, Inter Miami, was playing Ecuador’s Independiente del Valle in Bayamón when a fan ran to the center circle and grabbed Messi by the waist before both were pulled down by a security guard.
Messi appeared to be unharmed. The Argentine star immediately got up and walked to another part of the pitch.
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Messi's security guard situation has been a subject of fan fascination for years, especially after he came to the U.S. to join Major League Soccer's Inter Miami.
His main bodyguard, Yassine Chueko, has gone viral in previous years for hovering alertly over Messi while the star was playing soccer. However, in 2025, Inter Miami changed Chueko's role to prevent him from being on the field to guard Messi from pitch invaders.
Chueko expressed concern and frustration over the decision, warning it could result in Messi getting tackled.
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"They don't allow me to be on the field anymore," the bodyguard said in an interview with social media channel House of Highlights.
"I was in Europe for seven years, working for Ligue 1 and the Champions League, and only six people invaded the pitch. I came to the USA and in just 20 months, 16 people have already done so. There's a huge problem here. I'm not the problem. Let me help Messi."
An Inter Miami team spokesperson previously told ESPN it was a club decision, not MLS', to not have Cheuko on the sidelines. However, Cheuko remains an employee of the club and part of the security detail, and escorts Messi daily.
Now, at the start of 2026, a pitch invader has successfully reached Messi on the field and brought the 38-year-old superstar to the ground, in Cheuko's absence.
Thursday's match was originally scheduled for Feb. 13, but was postponed because Messi felt discomfort in his leg during the previous exhibition match against Barcelona SC of Ecuador.
Santiago Morales and Messi scored in the 16th and 70th minutes respectively to give Inter Miami a 2-1 win.
Miami, which started its MLS season with a 3-0 loss to LAFC, faces Orlando City next Sunday.
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Legendary Texas BBQ restaurant in spotlight as RFK Jr touts 'real food' on health tour
Making a smoky pit stop in Austin, Texas, this week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. kicked off what he called a "national BBQ tour" with a visit to one of the Lone Star State’s most iconic barbecue joints.
"First stop on my national BBQ tour, I visited Terry Black’s to EAT REAL FOOD," Kennedy wrote Thursday on X, sharing photos of himself holding a hefty beef rib and standing behind a counter lined with brisket, ribs and other smoked meats.
Terry Black’s Barbecue, which has five locations across Texas and one in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the state’s most popular smokehouses. It's frequently landed on Texas Monthly’s list of the top 50 BBQ joints, according to local reports.
RFK JR BACKS BEEF, DECLARING ‘WAR ON PROTEIN IS OVER’ AS HE THANKS AMERICA’S CATTLE RANCHERS
The visit comes as Kennedy continues his nationwide "Take Back Your Health" tour.
The HHS initiative is tied to the rollout of the new dietary guidelines for Americans and the Trump administration’s "Make America Healthy Again" effort.
Kennedy's visit also came just hours before he delivered the keynote address at the "Eat Real Food" rally in Austin.
"I want to thank Texas for leading the country in MAHA," Kennedy said at the rally.
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He discussed changes he wants to see in nutrition education at America's medical schools, plus in military meals and baby formula regulation, local outlet KXAN reported.
An announcement could come as early as next week, he said, alongside major medical schools to begin "teaching 48 hours of nutrition" — and that he's spoken with test makers about dedicating 15% of medical testing to nutrition.
Kennedy also said Florida-based celebrity chef Robert Irvine is expanding efforts to revamp food offerings on U.S. military bases.
"He’s already in five bases. By the end of this month, he’ll be in 20 bases," Kennedy said, according to KXAN. "We’re going to do them all."
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The rally, presented by MAHA Action, was billed as part of a nationwide push championing whole, nutrient-dense foods over ultra-processed alternatives, according to a press release from the nonprofit.
MAHA Action described the event as supporting new dietary guidelines that the government introduced earlier this year.
Kennedy has long argued that many of America’s chronic health problems stem from what he describes as an additive-heavy, highly processed diet.
Earlier this month, Kennedy told thousands of cattle ranchers in Nashville that the "war on protein is over" and "beef is back on the menu," Fox News Digital previously reported.
He also thanked America’s ranchers for producing "real, nutrient-dense food" as part of the administration’s updated dietary guidelines.
The secretary has also spoken openly about his own meat-heavy eating habits.
Kennedy follows a carnivore-centric diet focused on steak and supplemented with fermented foods to support gut health, and has claimed he lost 20 pounds in 20 days and reduced visceral fat after making the switch.
Medical experts caution, however, that the extreme diet might not be good for everyone.
Fox News Digital reached out to Terry Black's Barbecue for comment about RFK Jr.'s visit.
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The restaurant, founded in 2014, says on its website that "we opened Terry Black’s to honor [our] hard-earned family know-how and to bring delicious Central Texas flavors to you with our own unique style." Three siblings started the restaurant chain, named after their dad, Terry Black, beginning with their Austin location.
Fox News True Crime Newsletter: New Nancy Guthrie video, Caleb Flynn's charges, missing mom arrested
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Team USA star Brady Tkachuk bloodied after hit, receives game misconduct in NHL return
The Ottawa Senators were back in action Thursday, and Team USA star Brady Tkachuk was right in the middle of things in the team’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings.
Tkachuk, 26, opened the scoring in the game when he ripped a shot from the slot on a power play to give the Senators a 1-0 lead in the first period.
While Tkachuk and the Senators were held off the score sheet the rest of the game, he was still involved in the action.
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In the second period, after the Red Wings tied the game on Dylan Larkin’s power-play goal, Tkachuk was bloodied on a hit.
Red Wings defenseman Simon Edvinsson stepped into Tkachuk, dropping the Senators captain to the ice as he held his face. Tkachuk’s teammate, Dylan Cozens, took issue with Edvinsson’s hit and dropped the gloves.
Edvinsson landed a couple of solid punches and dropped Cozens to the ice. After the fight, Tkachuk was helped to the bench by a trainer, holding a towel to his face.
After Edvinsson and Cozens fought, numerous other Red Wings and Senators players were tangled up with one another. They eventually were untangled, and the referees were convening at center ice when Tkachuk skated off the bench and toward the Red Wings penalty box to talk to Edvinsson.
The referees quickly skated over to pull Tkachuk away and promptly handed him a 10-minute misconduct penalty. Once in the box, Tkachuk and Edvinsson stood and barked at each other.
The teams played a scoreless third period, and the Red Wings won in overtime on Larkin’s second goal of the game.
The Senators will look to bounce back when they play the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night at 7 p.m. ET.
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US women's hockey gold medalist says it's 'sad' men's team had to apologize for Olympics controversy
Olympic gold medalist and University of Minnesota hockey star Abbey Murphy dismissed the narrative that the men’s Olympic hockey team disrespected them by laughing at a remark President Donald Trump made after their win over Canada on Sunday, saying that the two groups share a mutual respect for one another.
Speaking about some of her fondest memories at Milan Cortina, Murphy said during an appearance on Barstool’s "Spittin’ Chiclets" podcast that her favorite memory came the night of the men’s gold medal game when the two groups met in the dining hall.
"The first two guys that we saw were Brady Tkachuk, Connor Hellebuyck and Charlie McAvoy. Charlie McAvoy had his goggles on his head, I mean biggest smile on his face and he welcomed every single girl [with] a big old hug, a squeeze that we were all laughing about, good memories. And he was just super happy for us as we were for them."
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Murphy, who won gold with her two goals and five assists throughout the tournament, said the two teams sat together for 2.5 hours before the men’s team had to depart around 3 a.m.
"We sat around the table with laughs and jokes. Jack Eichel was leading a lot of cheers that we were following along on. I was sitting next to Tage Thompson, who had a lot to share. He was a really funny guy. But, you know, it’s just stuff like that we’re going to remember forever.
"To be there with them and experience all those things was some of the best moments I’ll remember," she added. "Obviously, a huge honor to represent the country with them. So, glad to make as many memories as possible."
Murphy went on to explain that despite the media storm that followed the men’s team after they were heard laughing in response to Trump saying he would "have" to also invite the women’s team to the State of the Union address, she thought it was "sad" that the players needed to apologize.
"We never felt anything bad from them. It’s sad that they even have to apologize for anything. It really is."
"They’re a special group of boys and we’re honored to kind of be in that journey with them and share it. But we know how much they respect us and we respect them. It definitely goes two ways."
A debate surrounding the men’s team attending the State of the Union address and meeting with Trump in the Oval Office on Tuesday led to many of the players facing questions about the incident upon their return to the NHL.
U.S. women’s hockey star Hillary Knight addressed the controversy on ESPN, calling the joke "distasteful," but defended the men’s players.
"I think there's a genuine level of support there and respect," she said. "I think that's being overshadowed by a quick lapse. I think the guys were in a tough spot, so I think it's a shame this storyline and narrative has kind of blown up and overshadowing that connection and genuine interest in one another and cheering each other on."
The women’s hockey team declined an invitation to the State of the Union address, but USA Hockey said in a later statement that the team would "soon" visit the White House to celebrate their gold medal success "based on their schedules once their seasons conclude."
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Backlash grows after Clinton-appointed judge frees migrants over ICE agent masking
A Bill Clinton-appointed federal judge is among several drawing criticism for continuing to order the release of some of the 650 illegal immigrants arrested by ICE in Operation Country Roads.
In one case that drew public attention, Judge Joseph Goodwin of the Southern District of West Virginia granted the release of Salvadoran national Anderson Jesus Urquilla-Ramos, a decision the man’s attorney told Bloomberg Law "reinforces that immigration enforcement must operate within constitutional limits."
In his order, Goodwin lashed out at ICE agents’ masks and warrant-free arrests, saying "antiseptic judicial rhetoric cannot do justice to what is happening."
Goodwin characterized DHS’ behavior as an "assault on the constitutional order [and] what the Fourth Amendment was written to prevent," according to WVMetroNews, and he permitted habeas corpus, a detained defendant’s ability to challenge his confinement.
FEDERAL JUDGE’S ‘UNHINGED’ ORDER IN MIGRANT CASE IGNITES REPUBLICAN FURY, IMPEACHMENT DEMAND
In Goodwin’s order releasing Yuri Aroca and Arley Valenzuela, he lambasted their detention after a traffic stop along the West Virginia Turnpike near Pax, West Virginia.
"I am not blind to the practical demands of immigration enforcement, including cooperation between state and federal authorities, but the Constitution presupposed restraint as the default of lawful authority," he wrote in his ruling.
Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.V., who represents the southern half of the state, did not hold back in her response to the situation.
"If Judge Goodwin experienced even 1% of the threats and harassment that ICE officers receive, he might have had the courage to make a ruling based on the law and not his personal political agenda," Miller said.
"Thankfully, he, his family and his home are free from the fear of doxxing and danger coming from the radical leftists — our ICE agents are not as fortunate."
Miller said masking protects ICE agents from those who want to harm them and keeps their families out of the "crosshairs of the mobs that continue to terrorize our cities."
FEDERAL JUDGE STRIKES DOWN LARGE PARTS OF TRUMP MASS DETENTION POLICIES FOR MIGRANTS
Operation Country Roads netted hundreds of illegal immigrants from Charles Town in the north to Beckley in the south, and many of the cases fall within the Charleston-based Southern District of West Virginia.
Moore Capito, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, defended the state’s partnership with federal law enforcement in comments to Fox News Digital.
"We in the Southern District of West Virginia have the most committed and cooperative law enforcement partners that you will find," Capito said.
"Day after day, they are on the front lines working to keep our communities safe. Our officers take precautions to protect themselves and their families from retaliation, the same way members of the judiciary rely on institutional protections every day."
Capito said his office will continue to support law enforcement while responding to several petitions, adding that the cases involving the now-released individuals are ripe for appeal.
In one of his orders, Goodwin wrote that "no specific danger has been identified that required these agents to be masked for this arrest," a statement the White House took particular exception to.
"ICE officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults against them because of dangerous, untrue smears from elected Democrats," spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital.
"ICE officers wear masks to protect themselves and their families from being doxxed. ICE officers act heroically to enforce the law and protect American communities with the utmost professionalism. Anyone pointing the finger at law enforcement officers instead of the criminals is simply doing the bidding of criminal illegal aliens."
An Obama-appointed judge, Irene Berger, who also recently blunted a key tenet of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s "MAHA" agenda, ordered the similarly reasoned release of a noncitizen big rig driver detained at the Ghent Toll Plaza on the turnpike.
Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.V., who represents the northern half of the state, including Jefferson County, where local law enforcement collaborated with ICE to quickly remove suspects from the streets, agreed with Miller that judges should understand the dangers faced by agents.
"ICE agents are being doxxed, and their families are being attacked by radical leftists just for doing their jobs," Moore told Fox News Digital.
"We’ve seen time and again what violent leftists are capable of, and our ICE agents should never be subjected to this terrible treatment."
FEDERAL JUDGE RELEASES FOUR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS CONVICTED OF MURDER, SEX CRIMES FROM ICE CUSTODY
Moore called Goodwin’s ruling "shameful" and said it puts ideology above protecting American families.
"I am grateful to the brave ICE agents who are doing their duty to defend America," he said. Gov. Patrick Morrisey shared the sentiment.
"We stand with President Trump, the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and we are confident that as these cases move through the justice system, the court will find that the protection and safety of federal agents is constitutional," Morrisey told Fox News Digital.
"We also stand firmly with ICE. The safety of law enforcement officers is paramount."
Morrisey said that threats of doxxing, targeted harassment and violence are "very real."
"There is a clear need to protect those who serve," he said, disagreeing with the tact from the bench.
"These men and women put themselves in harm’s way to enforce the law, and we will always stand alongside our fellow officers."
Some released individuals named President Donald Trump as a defendant, signaling the federal government would be the party to appeal. Others listed West Virginia corrections official Christopher Mason, ICE Director Todd Lyons and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Asked about the cases and what next steps might be, a Justice Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that concerns over agents’ tactics and masking have been "reaffirmed" through a recent California court case.
"Laws banning federal agents from wearing protective masks are unconstitutional," the spokesperson said.
"This Department of Justice is focused on law and order, public safety, and will not tolerate any violence directed toward law enforcement officials working tirelessly to keep Americans safe, despite the best efforts of activist judges who’d rather see violent illegal criminals walk free."
Fox News Digital reached out to the rest of West Virginia’s delegation — Sens. Jim Justice II and Shelley Moore Capito — for comment.
Bill Clinton says Trump 'never said anything' to suggest he was involved with Epstein: Comer
Former President Bill Clinton suggested he could not recall President Donald Trump ever implicating himself in Jeffrey Epstein's crimes, one of the Republicans deposing him said Friday.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., briefly updated reporters during Clinton's deposition in the panel's Epstein probe. The deposition began a little after 11 a.m. and is expected to continue into early Friday evening.
"I know there's a lot of obsession about President Trump from the media, a lot of curiosity about President Trump from media. I want to make a statement because they'll probably not mention this when they come out here," Comer said, referring to Democrats on the committee.
He said the panel's top Democrat, Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., asked Clinton if Trump should be called before the committee like he was.
"That's for you to decide," Clinton said, according to Comer.
"The president went on to say that the president, Trump, ‘has never said anything to me to make me think he was involved,’ and he meant with Epstein," Comer said. "I thought that was an interesting thing that President Clinton said."
His deposition, and that of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton before him, are taking place in the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center in Westchester County, N.Y.
The Clintons have claimed the New York City suburb as their permanent residence since leaving the White House in early 2000.
Democrats who emerged from the performing arts center minutes later to update reporters signaled they did not agree with Comer's account but would not go into details on their own.
Garcia suggested there was an agreement between all parties not to discuss details of the deposition as it was happening.
NANCY MACE SAYS 'UNHINGED' HILLARY CLINTON ERUPTED DURING CLOSED-DOOR EPSTEIN DEPOSITION
"I think the best response with that is for you to view the complete record what actually he said, which, look, we're not going to disclose what was said because that's not in the rules. But Republicans keep breaking the rules," the California Democrat told reporters.
"President Clinton did bring up some additional information about discussions with President Trump. I think that the way Chairman Comer described it, I don't think it's a complete, accurate description of what actually was said.
"So, let's release the full transcript, and you can all get a full record of what actually was said, which brings up some very important new questions about comments that President Trump has actually said in the past."
Trump has been a main topic in the increasingly partisan divide in the House Oversight Committee's probe.
Democrats have accused the GOP side of covering up for Trump at the expense of Epstein's victims, while Republicans have accused Democrats of using the pedophile and his heinous crimes as a tool for attacking the commander in chief.
Trump told reporters Friday when asked about Clinton, "I don't like seeing him deposed."
The deposition is ongoing behind closed doors, but the committee is expected to release a video and transcript of the entire sit-down within days of its conclusion. The same is true for Hillary Clinton's deposition, the video for which could be released as early as this weekend.
The only portion of Clinton's testimony that is public so far is his opening statement in which he denied knowing anything about Epstein's crimes.
"Now, let me say what you're going to hear from me. First, I had no idea of the crimes Epstein was committing. No matter how many photos you show me, I have two things that, at the end of the day, matter more than your interpretation of those 20-year-old photos," Clinton said, according to his prepared opening remarks.
"I know what I saw and, more importantly, what I didn't see. I know what I did and, more importantly, what I didn't do. I saw nothing and I did nothing wrong."
Neither Trump nor Clinton have been implicated in any wrongdoing associated with Epstein or his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.
NASA chief vows four Moon missions before Trump's term ends in ambitious 2028 timeline
EXCLUSIVE: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman laid out the timeline for the Artemis Moon landing and discussed the current delay to the Artemis II mission during an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital.
The agency announced Friday that Artemis III, Artemis IV and Artemis V will all be launched before the end of President Donald Trump’s second term. Artemis IV and Artemis V will be missions where astronauts return to the surface of the Moon.
"To be overwhelmingly clear, we did not stretch out our timeline or delay anything. What we did is insert additional missions, standardized, so we can actually achieve the national policy that President Trump set out to return American astronauts to the Moon, and build an enduring presence to stay," Isaacman told Fox News Digital.
"Artemis II, we're going to launch in a matter of weeks [and] go around the Moon," Isaacman explained. "Artemis III will launch by mid 2027 with the aim to buy down risk and low Earth orbit for subsequent [Moon] landing attempts in 2028."
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The Artemis program was initially established by President Donald Trump during his first term in December 2017.
Isaacman is seeking to complete four Artemis missions under his tenure at the agency, while the Biden administration successfully completed just one non-manned test flight in 2022.
The NASA administrator was critical of the Biden administration for the delay in launches, telling Fox News Digital "the previous administration didn't make any decisions over the last four years that need to be done."
"That's being corrected now," Isaacaman said. "You need to standardize, you need to launch with cadence. That's how you get back to the moon. That's how you stay. President Trump's 100% behind that."
Artemis II was scheduled to launch in early February, though the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket was transferred from the launchpad back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to repair a helium leak on Wednesday.
In response to the Artemis II delay, the administrator also pointed out that the three-year delay between the Biden administration's last successful Artemis mission and the current one set the agency back.
"You can't launch a rocket this complex and important every three years, and expect to get it right," Isaacman added. "There's just, there's just no muscle memory there. There's going to be mistakes."
"We're not going to rush this, because, clearly, we're, again, we're relearning the same lessons, which means we didn't get the technical root cause last time, three years ago," Isaacman said. "We’re hoping, in a matter of days, we'll have our arms around [Artemis II]."
Isaacman said that the current launch window for Artemis II is set for early April.
NASA RETURNS HUMANS TO DEEP SPACE AFTER OVER 50 YEARS WITH FEBRUARY ARTEMIS II MOON MISSION
The 43-year-old billionaire was sworn in as the administrator of the space agency last December. Isaacman himself is a space fanatic, having commanded the first ever commercial spacewalk in September 2024.
In the less than one hundred days that he has served as administrator, Isaacman has been vocal about his dedication to Trump’s mission to return Americans to the surface of the Moon and beyond — a daunting task for a mission that was last completed during Apollo 17 in 1972, more than half a century ago.
"The approach we were taking is the right way, and it's consistent with NASA's history," Isaacman told Fox News Digital. "We didn't go right to Apollo 11. We launched with frequency, and we continued to learn and buy down risk."
NASA SAYS AMERICA WILL WIN ‘THE SECOND SPACE RACE’ AGAINST CHINA
"NASA, throughout our history, has launched, on average, every three months, our design vehicles from Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, through space shuttle. Apollo 8 launched less than two months after Apollo 7's splashdown," Isaacaman said.
"This is how you get back to the Moon and be able to stay," the NASA administrator added.
He also noted that funding for the missions and resources needed for success already exist at the agency, and that "we got everything we need."
TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY DUFFY TO ANNOUNCE NUCLEAR REACTOR DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR THE MOON
One of the key components to ensuring the completion of each Artemis mission is labor, and Isaacman took issue with the large number of contractors that work with the space agency, yet are not employed by NASA itself.
When asked if he planned on transitioning contractors to NASA employees, Isaacman said, "100%."
"One of the first observations I had in the job after visiting every one of the NASA centers is all of the core competencies that we either outsourced or lost over the years," Isaacman explained. "Contractors are great and should contribute to NASA in areas that we are not supposed to be the best in the world at."
"But when we're talking about launchpad, launch control, mission control in Houston, those should be civil servants," Isaacman told Fox News Digital. "That should be a core competency in NASA. We should be the best in the world at it. We are going to exercise the workforce directive that went out weeks ago to convert contractors to civil servants, rebuild core competencies."
The NASA administrator said that top companies who provide contractors, like Boeing, Elon Musk’s SpaceX, and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin, have told him that they support the timeline that would ultimately achieve Trump’s vision of returning mankind to the Moon.
"We have universal support in this," Isaacman explained. "Support from every one of the prime contractors in this program. Lockheed, Boeing, ULA, SpaceX, Blue Origin and all of the congressional leaders that have space equities understand that this is the way back to the Moon."
Two more Trump allies say Biden FBI secretly seized their data amid 'weaponization' controversy
At least two more allies of President Donald Trump have said the Biden-era FBI secretly sought their records, in addition to the records of FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
Republican operative Corey Lewandowski, who currently serves as a Department of Homeland Security aide, said Thursday he received the same type of notice that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino disclosed last year regarding records seizures. Both men said they were notified in 2024 that Google had complied with FBI legal demands for information tied to their accounts, underscoring how broadly the bureau’s investigation into Trump extended and fueling Republicans’ claims that President Joe Biden "weaponized" law enforcement to target his political opponents.
"Funny - I received the same notice," Lewandowski wrote on X. "Where is the media outcry. Right, they don’t care when it happens to Trump people."
Lewandowski and Scavino both said the notices they received indicated that Google had been under a court-authorized gag order and could not notify them sooner about the demands for their records. Prosecutors commonly obtain such gag orders as part of their investigations.
JONATHAN TURLEY: JACK SMITH’S SECRET SURVEILLANCE OF PATEL AND WILES SHOULD ALARM US ALL
Patel, meanwhile, confirmed the existence of the subpoenas for his and Wiles' phone records in a statement to Fox News this week and said the subpoenas were difficult to access because the files for them had added layers of protection.
"It is outrageous and deeply alarming that the previous FBI leadership secretly subpoenaed my own phone records — along with those of now White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles — using flimsy pretexts and burying the entire process in prohibited case files designed to evade all oversight," Patel said.
Fox News was told that the subpoenas sought Patel's and Wiles' toll records, which include dates and times and phone numbers related to messages and calls but do not include the contents of them. The subpoenas themselves have not been made public, so the details about what they sought remain unconfirmed.
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Two FBI officials told Fox News that in 2023, agents also recorded a phone call between Wiles and her lawyer. The officials said the lawyer was aware the call was being recorded and consented, but Wiles was not.
The claim about the lawyer has however been disputed. An unnamed lawyer representing Wiles at the time of the phone call in question denied to Axios that he knew of the FBI recording a phone call between him and his client.
"If I ever pulled a stunt like that I wouldn’t — and shouldn’t — have a license to practice law. I’m as shocked as Susie," the lawyer told the outlet.
While it is unclear exactly what the FBI was investigating, the timing and targets signal the subpoenas could be related to the bureau's probe into President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents. Patel and Wiles, both private citizens during the Biden administration, were known witnesses in the classified documents case, in which special counsel Jack Smith alleged Trump violated the Espionage Act by hoarding national security-related documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
It has previously been widely reported that Patel was summoned to give grand jury testimony in exchange for immunity in 2022 as part of the same probe.
The FBI investigated Trump over both his alleged retention of classified documents and his alleged attempts to subvert the 2020 election. Documents released by Congress show that the FBI — and later Smith, after he became special counsel — issued hundreds of subpoenas targeting Republican entities and figures, including the phone records of several GOP lawmakers. Republican targets have characterized Smith’s actions as an egregious abuse of power and hyper-politicized, while Smith has repeatedly defended his work as by-the-book and apolitical.
In line with his claims of a weaponized FBI, Patel fired at least 10 bureau employees around the same time he revealed the subpoenas. The move drew condemnation from the FBI Agents Association, which represents thousands of employees and has maintained that agents’ actions are typically the result of following orders within the chain of command.
"The FBIAA condemns today’s unlawful termination of FBI Special Agents, which—like other firings by Director Patel—violates the due process rights of those who risk their lives to protect our country," the FBIAA said. "These actions weaken the Bureau by stripping away critical expertise and destabilizing the workforce, undermining trust in leadership and jeopardizing the Bureau’s ability to meet its recruitment goals—ultimately putting the nation at greater risk."
Former U.S. Attorney John Fishwick of Virginia told Fox News the firings could keep Patel "in good stead with President Trump," saying Patel did not "look like a prototypical G-man" during his viral and widely reported on celebration at the Olympics in the Team USA men's ice hockey team's locker room.
The White House referred Fox News to the FBI when asked for comment. The FBI gave no additional comment. A representative for Smith had no comment.
Fox News' David Spunt contributed to this report.
ICE arrests illegal immigrant training as Pennsylvania corrections officer suspected of rape
An illegal immigrant training to be a corrections officer in Pennsylvania was arrested on suspicion of rape and other sexual offenses, federal authorities said Friday.
Ibrahim George Kallon, a citizen of Sierra Leone, obtained a visa that eventually expired in 2024, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said.
At the time of his Feb. 11 arrest by the Glenolden Police Department, Kallon was training to become a Delaware County Prison corrections officer, ICE said.
Among the crimes Kallon was arrested for: involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault, false imprisonment and indecent assault.
"Delaware County Prison sent him back into the community despite an ICE immigration detainer, so ICE @EROPhiladelphia officers had to arrest him at-large," ICE wrote in a post on X.
SCHUMER, DEMS AGAIN BLOCK DHS FUNDING, FORCE STATE OF THE UNION SHOWDOWN
"If the county won’t protect its own residents, we’ll do it for them," the post continued.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the sheriff's office and district attorney's office.
In January, ICE detained Morris Brown, 45, a Liberian citizen accused of "masquerading as a U.S. citizen" and working as a Minnesota Department of Corrections prison guard, the Department of Homeland Security said at the time.
Investigators looking into Brown also found evidence of marriage fraud prior instances where he falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen in official documents, DHS said.