FBI defends Kash Patel after report alleging he gifts custom whiskey bottles

The FBI said that agency director Kash Patel “followed all applicable ethical guidelines” after a report in the Atlantic alleged that he distributed customized bourbon whiskey bottles as gifts. In an article published on Wednesday, the Atlantic described Patel as travelling with a stock of “personalized branded bourbon” that he allegedly hands out frequently to people around him. The report says the bottles feature the branding of the Kentucky distillery Woodford Reserve and are engraved with the phrase “Kash Patel FBI Director”, along with an image of an FBI shield. Around the shield is text that includes Patel’s title and his preferred stylization of his first name: Ka$h . The shield is held by an eagle clutching the number nine, probably referring to Patel’s position in the sequence of FBI directors. Ben Williamson, the FBI’s assistant director, said in a statement to the Guardian: “The Atlantic’s premise is false and misleading. The bottles in question are part of a common practice in the FBI that started well over a decade ago, long before Director Patel arrived. “Senior Bureau officials have long exchanged commemorative items in formal gift settings consistent with ethics rules. Director Patel has followed all applicable ethical guidelines and pays for any personal gift himself,” the statement added. …