Maurene Comey, the daughter of ex-FBI Director James Comey, said Thursday she was fired from the powerful Manhattan US Attorney’s Office “without reason” — as she warned that the Justice Department‘s decision to ax her will only sow alarm and that “fear is the tool of a tyrant.”
“Yesterday was unexpectedly my last day in the Office. I was summarily fired via memo from Main Justice that did not give a reason for my termination,” Comey wrote in an email to colleagues, which was obtained by The Post.
Comey — a veteran lawyer in the Southern District of New York, where she prosecuted Jeffrey Epstein, his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell and, most recently, Sean “Diddy” Combs – went on to suggest that her firing without apparent reason was an abuse of power.
“If a career prosecutor can be fired without reason, fear may seep into the decisions of those who remain. Do not let that happen,” Comey wrote.
“Fear is the tool of a tyrant, wielded to suppress independent thought,” she continued.
“Instead of fear, let this moment fuel the fire that already burns at the heart of this place. A fire of righteous indignation at abuses of power. Of commitment to seek justice for victims. Of dedication to truth above all else.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Thursday that the DOJ had made the decision to fire Comey, rejecting the notion that President Trump played any role.
The DOJ refused to comment when asked to explain the reason for Comey’s firing.
“The department declines to comment on personnel matters,” spokesman Wyn Hornbuckle said in an email Thursday.
A spokesman for Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton declined to comment.
Comey was informed Wednesday that she was being booted under Article II of the Constitution, which describes the powers of the president, according to multiple sources.
Her ouster came just weeks after Combs’ nearly two-month-long trial, which she worked on with five other federal prosecutors, ended with the jury acquitting the disgraced hip-hop mogul of the most serious charges against him — racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking.
She’d previously worked on the prosecutions of disgraced financier pedophile Epstein and his madam, Maxwell, who was found guilty of multiple sex crimes at trial in 2022 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
“This was inevitable,” one US attorney source opined, suggesting that the Trump administration could always claim “on paper” that the firing “was merit based because of her connection to the P Diddy case and the Epstein stink.”
The source added “it would not be a stretch to say her father didn’t help her career,” referring to the president’s long-running tiff with the elder Comey, whom Trump fired as FBI director in 2017 during his first term.
Legal experts described Comey’s firing as “highly unusual” – also speculating the reason was more about her father than her track record.
“It’s highly unusual and unprecedented. Obviously, there have been prosecutors fired for losing cases. It’s very rare,” former prosecutor Neama Rahmani said.
“The Diddy case, I believe it was mishandled, bungled, botched whatever adjective you want to use, but they still got a conviction. They are still going to try to get time. I think it has to do with her father,” he said.
“She was able to convict Ghislaine Maxwell. Her credentials are solid. She has a decent track record despite the outcome in this case.”
Still, Rahmani warned that Comey’s ouster could potentially spell trouble as the Epstein saga rages on.
“The Epstein thing is a huge deal. I don’t know if it would necessarily help because if Comey is no longer working for the Department of Justice and she prosecuted Ghislaine Maxwell she is free to say everything she wants,” he said.
“She could spill the beans and say ‘Maxwell wanted to talk and name names and we refused to take that information and cooperate or follow up on the information she wanted to provide’. She can absolutely blow the whistle.”
The decision to boot Comey came as US Attorney General Pam Bondi faced intense MAGA backlash over the DOJ’s decision not to release any more evidence from the Epstein investigation.
Some right-wing internet personalities – including Laura Loomer, who has been critical of Bondi’s handling of the Epstein files — had been calling for Comey’s head.
Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan federal jail cell in 2019 before he could stand trial on federal charges of sex-trafficking minors in New York and Florida.
Comey’s firing also comes after the DOJ last week appeared to acknowledge the existence of an investigation into her father.
The specific nature of the potential criminal matter involving James Comey, though, remained unclear.
