Top federal prosecutor in New York announces resignation

The federal prosecutor who has overseen the convictions of Sen. Robert Menendez, Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell and disgraced cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman-Fried said Monday that he will step down as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York next month.

“It has been an honor to serve the American people,” Damian Williams, who has also been overseeing the prosecutions of New York City Mayor Eric Adams and rap artist Sean “Diddy” Combs, said in a statement announcing his intention to resign effective at 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 13.

Williams, the first Black man to hold the prestigious and powerful post, was a veteran of the office and was nominated by President Joe Biden in 2021. President-elect Donald Trump had already announced his intention to replace him.

Once headed by Rudy Giuliani, the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office handles some of the most complex and high-profile criminal cases in the country, including public corruption, securities fraud and terrorism cases.

During his tenure, Williams secured convictions against Menendez, the longtime Democratic senator from New Jersey, on bribery charges; FTX CEO Bankman-Fried on fraud charges; and Maxwell on sex trafficking charges.

Those awaiting trial include Adams on bribery and wire fraud charges and Combs on an array of charges that include sex trafficking and racketeering. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Williams was also overseeing a case involving an Iranian man who was charged in a plot to assassinate then-candidate Trump earlier this year.

In his statement, Williams called his decision to step down “bittersweet.”

“It is bitter in the sense that I am leaving my dream job, leading an institution I love that is filled with the finest public servants in the world. It is sweet in that I am confident I am leaving at a time when the Office is functioning at an incredibly high level — upholding and exceeding its already high standard of excellence, integrity, and independence,” he said. 

Williams’ deputy, Edward Y. Kim, will become acting U.S. attorney after his departure.

Trump announced earlier this month he would be nominating his former Securities and Exchange Commission head Jay Clayton to head the office.

Trump initially nominated Clayton for the post in 2020, but his nomination was scuttled amid opposition from New York Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, both Democrats, and the circumstances of then-U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman’s departure from the office. Berman was fired by Trump after resisting efforts to force him to resign to make way for Clayton.

Berman’s deputy Audrey Strauss took over as acting U.S. attorney and was later formally appointed to the post, which she held until October 2021.

Trump also fired Berman’s predecessor, Preet Bharara, after initially asking him to remain in the post.

In his statement announcing Clayton’s nomination, Trump called him “a highly respected business leader, counsel, and public servant.”

“Jay is going to be a strong Fighter for the Truth as we Make America Great Again,” Trump wrote.