US Attorney Bharara: 'I Did Not Resign... I Was Fired'

Preet Bharara refused to resign as requested by Jeff Sessions
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 11, 2017 2:49 PM CST
US Attorney Says He Was Fired After Not Resigning
United States District Attorney Preet Bharara says he was fired after refusing to resign as requested by the Trump administration.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

An outspoken Manhattan federal prosecutor known for crusading against public corruption says he was fired after refusing to resign, as requested by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the AP reports. Preet Bharara announced in a tweet Saturday afternoon that he was fired. He said: "I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired." He went on to say in the tweet that being the US Attorney in the Southern District of New York will "forever be the greatest honor of my professional life."

The 48-year-old Bharara was asked by then-President-elect Trump to remain as US attorney in Manhattan during a November meeting at Trump Tower. Bharara was appointed by former President Obama in 2009. In frequent public appearances, Bharara has decried public corruption after successfully prosecuting over a dozen state lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike. (More Preet Bharara stories.)

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