The US justice department has fired Maurene Comey, a federal prosecutor in Manhattan and the daughter of the former FBI director James Comey, on Wednesday. The reason for her firing was not immediately clear. Comey had worked on several high-profile cases, including the prosecution of financier Jeffrey Epstein as well as rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs. Reacting to the firing, Maurene Comey said there was no reason behind her dismissal. “Yesterday was unexpectedly my last day in the Office. I was summarily fired via memo from Main Justice that did not give a reason for my termination,” she wrote in an email to colleagues, reported the New York Post. This comes as the administration is embroiled in a controversy after closing the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.
Who is Maurene Comey?
Maurene Comey was a seasoned attorney in the Southern District of New York, widely regarded as one of the Justice Department’s most prestigious prosecutorial offices.She famously worked on the prosecution of financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died in custody in 2019, as he was awaiting trial. Comey achieved significant success in several high-profile prosecutions, most notably securing the conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell on sex trafficking charges for assisting financier Jeffrey Epstein in the abuse of underage girls.In a declaration submitted in January, Comey argued that releasing documents on the Epstein case could harm the government’s position on a potential retrial of Maxwell. She said that making the materials public might expose witnesses “to possible embarrassment and harassment” potentially discouraging them from testifying, as per the New York Times. Most recently, Comey led the prosecution of Sean “Diddy” Combs. The trial against Combs ended in a split verdict and he was convicted on prostitution related charges but acquitted of more serious charges.In recent months, Comey came under repeated attacks from Trump’s right-wing base, including Laura Loomer, a far-right political activist, who urged attorney general Pam Bondi to fire her in May.