Robert Mueller, the former special counsel whose investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US election defined much of Donald Trump's first term in office, has died. He was 81. The cause was not immediately known. CBS News, the BBC US partner, confirmed his death. With deep sadness, we are sharing the news that Bob passed away on Friday night, the family said in a statement. Mueller previously led the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2001 to 2013, taking the office just days before the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. He is credited with reshaping the FBI into a modern counterterrorism agency.
Mueller is survived by his wife of nearly 60 years, Ann Cabell Standish, their two daughters, and three grandchildren. His special counsel inquiry put Trump's 2016 campaign under a microscope, drawing harsh criticism from the president, who tweeted: I'm glad he's dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!
Mueller's former employers and colleagues praised him as a longtime public servant. Both presidents he served under as FBI director, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, posted tributes. Bush expressed being deeply saddened by his death, noting that Mueller effectively led the agency to help prevent another terrorist attack on US soil. Obama described him as one of the finest directors in the history of the FBI.
Mueller was born in 1944. After studying politics at Princeton University, he joined the Marines and deployed to Vietnam in 1968, where he was wounded twice and received several commendations. He graduated from law school in 1973 and was unanimously confirmed as FBI director in August 2001, serving over a decade before retiring in 2013. His investigation into Russian attempts to influence the 2016 presidential election resulted in multiple high-profile indictments but ultimately did not establish a conspiracy with the Trump campaign. Mueller's findings, captured in the 448-page Mueller report, expressed that while it did not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also did not exonerate him.
Mueller is survived by his wife of nearly 60 years, Ann Cabell Standish, their two daughters, and three grandchildren. His special counsel inquiry put Trump's 2016 campaign under a microscope, drawing harsh criticism from the president, who tweeted: I'm glad he's dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!
Mueller's former employers and colleagues praised him as a longtime public servant. Both presidents he served under as FBI director, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, posted tributes. Bush expressed being deeply saddened by his death, noting that Mueller effectively led the agency to help prevent another terrorist attack on US soil. Obama described him as one of the finest directors in the history of the FBI.
Mueller was born in 1944. After studying politics at Princeton University, he joined the Marines and deployed to Vietnam in 1968, where he was wounded twice and received several commendations. He graduated from law school in 1973 and was unanimously confirmed as FBI director in August 2001, serving over a decade before retiring in 2013. His investigation into Russian attempts to influence the 2016 presidential election resulted in multiple high-profile indictments but ultimately did not establish a conspiracy with the Trump campaign. Mueller's findings, captured in the 448-page Mueller report, expressed that while it did not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also did not exonerate him.
