The US Justice Department has fired Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey, a lead prosecutor in major federal cases involving Jeffrey Epstein and Sean "Diddy" Combs, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Comey, the daughter of former FBI director James Comey, was dismissed on Wednesday from the US Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York, one of the country’s most prominent prosecutorial offices.
No official reason was provided for her termination, and both the Justice Department and the Manhattan US Attorney’s office declined to comment.
Her dismissal comes shortly after she led the prosecution of Combs, who was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges but convicted of a lesser prostitution-related offence.
Comey had previously helped secure the conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell, the former associate of disgraced convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and played a role in the original federal case against Epstein before his death in custody in 2019.
Sources told multiple outlets that Trump administration officials had long expressed discomfort with Comey’s presence in the Justice Department, given her father’s role in initiating the Russia investigation and his subsequent firing by Trump in 2017.
Her firing follows a series of shakeups in the Southern District.
Earlier this year, top prosecutor Matthew Podolsky stepped down, paving the way for Trump to appoint Jay Clayton as interim US attorney.
That move followed the February resignation of Danielle Sassoon, who protested the Justice Department's decision to drop corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams.
Comey’s firing adds to concerns over political interference within the Justice Department during Trump’s second term.
