Washington
FBI employee sues bureau after being fired over displaying a pride flag in the office
WASHINGTON (AP) — A veteran FBI employee training to become a special agent was fired last month for displaying at his workspace an LGBTQ+ flag, which had previously flown outside a field office, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court.
David Maltinsky had worked at the FBI for 16 years and was nearly finished with special agent training in Quantico, Virginia, when he was called into a meeting last month with FBI officials, given a letter from Director Kash Patel and told he was being “summarily dismissed” over the inappropriate display of political signage, Maltinsky’s lawsuit said.
The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Washington, said Maltinsky had been a decorated intelligence specialist working in the Los Angeles field office and most recently was pursuing a longtime dream of becoming a special agent.
In June 2021, the Los Angeles field office displayed a “Progress Pride” flag, which consists of a rainbow-colored horizontal stripes and a chevron with black, brown, pink, light blue, and white colors. It’s meant to represent people of color, as well as the LGBTQ+ community. Maltinsky was given that flag after it had come down and was then displayed at his Los Angeles field office workstation with the support and permission of his supervisors, according to the lawsuit.
In April, he began training at the FBI Academy to become a special agent and had successfully completed 16 of the 19 weeks of training at the time of his firing, the lawsuit stated.
Maltinsky said in the suit he helped lead diversity initiatives during his time at the bureau as well. President Donald Trump issued an executive order in January ending all diversity, equity and inclusion programs within the government.
The suit names Patel, the FBI, Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Justice Department as defendants.
The FBI and Justice Department declined to comment.
Among other things, Maltinsky is seeking reinstatement to his position along with an order declaring that the defendants violated his First Amendment rights to speech and Fifth Amendment rights to equal protection under the law.
Maltinsky’s attorney Christopher M. Mattei called the firing an unlawful attack.
Other lawsuits challenging the bureau’s personnel moves have been filed since President Donald Trump’s second term began. In September, three high-ranking FBI officials said in a lawsuit they were fired in a “campaign of retribution” carried out by a director who knew better but caved to political pressure from the Trump administration.
Oklahoma
Afghan teenager charged in Oklahoma plot for Election Day attack sentenced to 15 years
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Afghan teenager who pleaded guilty to taking part in an Oklahoma plot to carry out an Election Day attack has been sentenced to 15 years in prison, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Abdullah Haji Zada, 19, a citizen of Afghanistan and lawful permanent resident who was living in Moore, Oklahoma, was sentenced for knowingly receiving and conspiring to receive a firearm and ammunition to be used in a terrorist attack, court records show.
Zada previously agreed to be removed from the United States after he is released from prison, court records show.
Zada’s attorney, Jeff Byers, declined to comment Wednesday on the sentence.
Zada’s co-defendant, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, who previously worked as a security guard for an American military installation in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to conspiring and attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State group. He faces up to 35 years in prison.
Prosecutors allege Zada and Tawhedi took steps to obtain AK-47 rifles and ammunition and planned to carry out an attack targeting large crowds on Election Day last year.
An FBI agent who testified at a hearing last year said Tawhedi had used the online messaging application Telegram to communicate with an account associated with the Islamic State militant organization that was directing his actions, and that Tawhedi had sworn allegiance to the group and “would do whatever they told him to.”
New York
Chinese drug trafficking suspect handed to the U.S. by Mexico pleads not guilty in NYC
NEW YORK (AP) — A Chinese drug trafficking suspect who escaped custody in Mexico only to be recaptured in Cuba has been turned over to the U.S. to face charges he trafficked large quantities of cocaine and fentanyl into the country.
Zhi Dong Zhang, also known as “Brother Wang” among other aliases, pleaded not guilty to the charges at his arraignment Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court. His lawyer declined to comment following the court appearance.
Federal officials say Zhang ran a vast drug trafficking and money laundering operation that imported thousands of kilograms (pounds) of narcotics into the United States and other countries.
“The defendant stands accused of running a global enterprise that pumped massive quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine into our communities and laundered millions in narcotics proceeds,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. “His return to the United States is a major step in dismantling a network that has fueled addiction, violence, and death.”
Zhang’s criminal organization operated out of Mexico going back at least to 2016 and laundered its drug proceeds through shell companies created in the U.S. using false social security numbers and other fraudulent documents, according to federal prosecutors.
Officials identified more than 100 shell companies tied to Zhang’s organization that were used to launder at least $77 million in narcotics proceeds, they said.
Mexican authorities captured Zhang in Mexico City in October 2024 at the request of the U.S. government, but a judge granted him house arrest and he escaped the home where he was being held under military guard. Prosecutors say in court filings that he was eventually recaptured in Cuba and sent to the U.S. by Mexican authorities on Oct. 23.
Zhang, who has been detained until his next court date in January, also faces a related set of federal charges in Georgia.
Government documents filed in that case describe a cocaine and fentanyl trafficking network with hubs in the Atlanta and Los Angeles metro areas. Millions of dollars from the drug sales were allegedly collected at stash houses in Georgia and California and deposited into accounts that Zhang could then access from Mexico, the documents said.
FBI employee sues bureau after being fired over displaying a pride flag in the office
WASHINGTON (AP) — A veteran FBI employee training to become a special agent was fired last month for displaying at his workspace an LGBTQ+ flag, which had previously flown outside a field office, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court.
David Maltinsky had worked at the FBI for 16 years and was nearly finished with special agent training in Quantico, Virginia, when he was called into a meeting last month with FBI officials, given a letter from Director Kash Patel and told he was being “summarily dismissed” over the inappropriate display of political signage, Maltinsky’s lawsuit said.
The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Washington, said Maltinsky had been a decorated intelligence specialist working in the Los Angeles field office and most recently was pursuing a longtime dream of becoming a special agent.
In June 2021, the Los Angeles field office displayed a “Progress Pride” flag, which consists of a rainbow-colored horizontal stripes and a chevron with black, brown, pink, light blue, and white colors. It’s meant to represent people of color, as well as the LGBTQ+ community. Maltinsky was given that flag after it had come down and was then displayed at his Los Angeles field office workstation with the support and permission of his supervisors, according to the lawsuit.
In April, he began training at the FBI Academy to become a special agent and had successfully completed 16 of the 19 weeks of training at the time of his firing, the lawsuit stated.
Maltinsky said in the suit he helped lead diversity initiatives during his time at the bureau as well. President Donald Trump issued an executive order in January ending all diversity, equity and inclusion programs within the government.
The suit names Patel, the FBI, Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Justice Department as defendants.
The FBI and Justice Department declined to comment.
Among other things, Maltinsky is seeking reinstatement to his position along with an order declaring that the defendants violated his First Amendment rights to speech and Fifth Amendment rights to equal protection under the law.
Maltinsky’s attorney Christopher M. Mattei called the firing an unlawful attack.
Other lawsuits challenging the bureau’s personnel moves have been filed since President Donald Trump’s second term began. In September, three high-ranking FBI officials said in a lawsuit they were fired in a “campaign of retribution” carried out by a director who knew better but caved to political pressure from the Trump administration.
Oklahoma
Afghan teenager charged in Oklahoma plot for Election Day attack sentenced to 15 years
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Afghan teenager who pleaded guilty to taking part in an Oklahoma plot to carry out an Election Day attack has been sentenced to 15 years in prison, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Abdullah Haji Zada, 19, a citizen of Afghanistan and lawful permanent resident who was living in Moore, Oklahoma, was sentenced for knowingly receiving and conspiring to receive a firearm and ammunition to be used in a terrorist attack, court records show.
Zada previously agreed to be removed from the United States after he is released from prison, court records show.
Zada’s attorney, Jeff Byers, declined to comment Wednesday on the sentence.
Zada’s co-defendant, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, who previously worked as a security guard for an American military installation in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to conspiring and attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State group. He faces up to 35 years in prison.
Prosecutors allege Zada and Tawhedi took steps to obtain AK-47 rifles and ammunition and planned to carry out an attack targeting large crowds on Election Day last year.
An FBI agent who testified at a hearing last year said Tawhedi had used the online messaging application Telegram to communicate with an account associated with the Islamic State militant organization that was directing his actions, and that Tawhedi had sworn allegiance to the group and “would do whatever they told him to.”
New York
Chinese drug trafficking suspect handed to the U.S. by Mexico pleads not guilty in NYC
NEW YORK (AP) — A Chinese drug trafficking suspect who escaped custody in Mexico only to be recaptured in Cuba has been turned over to the U.S. to face charges he trafficked large quantities of cocaine and fentanyl into the country.
Zhi Dong Zhang, also known as “Brother Wang” among other aliases, pleaded not guilty to the charges at his arraignment Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court. His lawyer declined to comment following the court appearance.
Federal officials say Zhang ran a vast drug trafficking and money laundering operation that imported thousands of kilograms (pounds) of narcotics into the United States and other countries.
“The defendant stands accused of running a global enterprise that pumped massive quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine into our communities and laundered millions in narcotics proceeds,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. “His return to the United States is a major step in dismantling a network that has fueled addiction, violence, and death.”
Zhang’s criminal organization operated out of Mexico going back at least to 2016 and laundered its drug proceeds through shell companies created in the U.S. using false social security numbers and other fraudulent documents, according to federal prosecutors.
Officials identified more than 100 shell companies tied to Zhang’s organization that were used to launder at least $77 million in narcotics proceeds, they said.
Mexican authorities captured Zhang in Mexico City in October 2024 at the request of the U.S. government, but a judge granted him house arrest and he escaped the home where he was being held under military guard. Prosecutors say in court filings that he was eventually recaptured in Cuba and sent to the U.S. by Mexican authorities on Oct. 23.
Zhang, who has been detained until his next court date in January, also faces a related set of federal charges in Georgia.
Government documents filed in that case describe a cocaine and fentanyl trafficking network with hubs in the Atlanta and Los Angeles metro areas. Millions of dollars from the drug sales were allegedly collected at stash houses in Georgia and California and deposited into accounts that Zhang could then access from Mexico, the documents said.
