Bondi, Patel and Pirro Announce Arrest of Key Participant in 2012 Benghazi Attack, Feb. 6, 2026
February 6, 2026 · The Justice Department · 0:18:47
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What happened
Attorney General Pamela Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced that a key participant in the 2012 attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi is in custody, according to the Justice Department description and the announcement. Bondi recalled the September 11, 2012 attack that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Glen Doherty, and Tyrone Woods, and said the department never stopped seeking justice, according to her remarks.
Bondi said the suspect landed at Andrews Air Force Base at 3 a.m. that morning, was greeted by Patel and Pirro, and will face charges related to murder, terrorism, and arson, prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, according to Bondi. She thanked the State Department and CIA partners and read a statement from CIA Director John Ratcliffe, who said the CIA and the nation will never forget the service and sacrifice of Doherty and Woods, according to the statement as read.
Patel said he and Dan Bongino had sat in meetings from early on determined to deliver justice, credited Bondi with bringing the interagency together, and said he was at the airfield with Pirro for the formal transfer of custody, according to Patel. He said that under President Trump’s leadership the administration had captured six of the FBI’s most wanted fugitives in one calendar year — two more, he said, than the entirety of the prior administration — and cited the recent capture of Ryan Wedding as part of the same effort, according to his remarks.
Why it matters
The Benghazi arrest closes a 14-year investigative chapter the department chose to announce at the top level, with the attorney general and FBI director personally fronting the transfer of custody, as they described it.
Scoreboard watch
Scoreboard candidate: Bondi announced the arrest and U.S. transfer of a key Benghazi attack participant on February 6, 2026, and Patel stated six FBI most-wanted fugitives were captured in one calendar year. Flagged for the scoreboard editor; no verdict is entered here.
Sources: The Justice Department, “Attorney General Bondi, Director Patel, U.S. Attorney Pirro Make Press Announcement”, 2026-02-06 (official upload, embedded above; published 2026-02-06). Transcript via Supadata (private research store, paraphrased and attributed, not republished). All figures and characterizations as stated by the speakers.
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