FBI agent removed from Russia probe over ‘anti-Trump bias’

WASHINGTON: The special counsel examining alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election removed a top FBI investigator from his team for exchanging text messages with a colleague who expressed anti-Trump views.

On Saturday The New York Times and The Washington Post identified the investigator as FBI agent Peter Strzok, deputy head of FBI counter-intelligence.

He was reassigned last year to the FBI’s human resources department after the Justice Department’s inspector general began looking into the text messages, the papers said.

Strzok played a key role in the FBI investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail server. During that probe and the presidential election last year, Strzok and an FBI colleague exchanged texts that disparaged then-Republican candidate Donald Trump and favoured Clinton, his Democratic rival, The Washington Post said.

The newspapers did not disclose details of the text messages. The New York Times said a lawyer for Strzok declined to comment, while The Washington Post said it repeatedly sought comment from Strzok, but received no response.

Robert Mueller’s office confirmed Strzok’s removal, but did not elaborate on the cause.

“Immediately upon learning of the allegations, the Special Counsel’s Office removed Peter Strzok from the investigation,” spokesperson Peter Carr said.