FBI Director Kash Patel touts ‘breakthrough’ after discovering Fauci’s phones from early in the pandemic

FBI Director Kash Patel has revealed that phones belonging to Dr. Anthony Fauci during the COVID-19 pandemic response have been recovered, Newsmax reported. Patel said this during Friday’s broadcast of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast.

Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, played a crucial role in coordinating the nation’s response to the virus during President Donald Trump’s first term. Even five years later, questions about the origins of the virus and the decision-making process for the response persist.

Data from the phones, which were previously missing, could shed light on those issues. “It is of public importance to figure out: Did that guy lie? Did he intentionally mislead the world and cause countless deaths?” Patel told host Joe Rogan. The clip was shared to X, formerly Twitter on Friday.

FBI Director Kash Patel on Dr. Anthony Fauci: “It is of public importance to figure out: Did that guy lie? Did he intentionally mislead the world and cause countless deaths?” pic.twitter.com/QYMtfGOit5

— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) June 6, 2025

Uncovering Secrets

Patel was excited to share that the devices that could spill Fauci’s secrets have been recovered. “We just had a great breakthrough this week on Fauci,” Patel shared.

“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,” he added. Although this appears to be great news for transparency, Patel carefully managed expectations.

“Everybody listening to us shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that everything’s in there. Maybe it’s deleted, maybe it’s not,” Patel continued.

“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,” the FBI director added. Many people, including Trump, believe that Fauci’s actions during the COVID-19 pandemic were not entirely above board.

“We think that there was definite foul play, but my opinion is irrelevant. It only matters what I can show the American people and prove,” Patel noted.

Accountability

Republican lawmakers have sought accountability regarding Fauci’s role in the pandemic response. Last year, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said Fauci should go to jail as his support of gain-of-function research potentially caused “between 10 [million] and 20 million” deaths.

Fauci has denied this, of course, and said during a 2024 House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic that there was no “lab leak” that caused the virus, nor was there a cover-up. Fauci has maintained that his COVID-19 response policies were lifesaving.

If that’s true, it’s a wonder why former President Joe Biden would bother to grant Fauci a preemptive pardon on his way out of office. According to the Associated Press, Biden granted Fauci a “full and unconditional” pardon all the way back to Jan. 1, 2014.

“These are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing. Even when individuals have done nothing wrong — and in fact have done the right thing — and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage reputations and finances,” Biden wrote in the pardon.

There is likely more to the story about the origins of COVID-19 and Fauci’s role in it, and his phone records may reveal that. In the meantime, it’s enough to know that the issue has not been swept under the rug.