The assistant U.S. attorney, Maurene Comey, who prosecuted Jefferey Epstein and his longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, said she was fired by the Department of Justice “without reason” and warned other federal prosecutors not to be scared of what she described as intimidation tactics. 

Ms. Comey, who is the daughter of a former FBI director, James Comey, was terminated from her position as a prosecutor at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York on Wednesday, as the Sun reported. 

“If a career prosecutor can be fired without reason, fear may seep into the decisions of those who remain,” Ms. Comey wrote in a memo sent to her staff members, which was obtained by the New York Post and other media outlets on Thursday. “Do not let that happen.”

Ms. Comey’s termination is most probably because of her father, who is despised by President Trump. He has prolifically denounced Mr. Trump over the last eight years and on Wednesday evening, an unnamed Trump administration source told CNN that due to the elder Comey’s conduct, Ms. Comey’s position in government was untenable.

Mr. Comey’s language in her note was similar to her father’s rhetoric. “Fear is the tool of a tyrant, wielded to suppress independent thought. Instead of fear, let this moment fuel the fire that already burns in the heart of this place,” she added in her note, “a fire of righteous indignation at abuses of power. Of commitment to seek justice for victims.” 

Ms. Comey was referring to the “heart” of the Southern District of New York, the district court where she had been employed since 2014, officially taking on the role as an assistant U.S. attorney in 2016, and becoming the chief of the Violent and Organized Crime Unit in 2021. 

The Southern District of New York, whose jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of the state of New York, including Manhattan and the Bronx, has set the stage for many high-profile cases, such as the recent prosecution of the hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, which was led by — and was a major defeat for — Ms. Comey. 

Earlier this month, a jury acquitted Mr. Combs of the most serious charges, racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking, finding him guilty only of the minor prostitution charges, for which he may still serve some time in prison, but not nearly as many years as he would have faced if he had been convicted of the other charges.       

But Ms. Comey’s defeat in Mr. Combs’s case does not appear to be the reason for her termination. 

According to numerous media reports, the Department of Justice cited in its letter to Ms. Comey Article II of the Constitution, which establishes the executive branch, headed by the president, and outlines the president’s powers, duties, and responsibilities, including being the commander-in-chief. 

Effectively, Ms. Comey was an “at will” employee who can, legally, be fired on a whim. Assistant U.S. attorneys are not represented by a union, unlike lower level federal workers.   

ABC News reported on Wednesday that Mr. Trump “privately vented about having a Comey work in his administration.” 

In 2017, Mr. Trump fired Mr. Comey as director of the FBI, after being angered by his conduct regarding the investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election. In recent days, the president accused him, along with Presidents Biden and Obama, of concocting the “Epstein files” that have dominated the headlines in the last weeks.

Meanwhile, the attorney general, Pam Bondi, has been firing prosecutors and other justice department staff members who were involved in the investigations and prosecutions of Mr. Trump during the Biden administration, including those involved in the prosecutions against January 6 rioters. 

But so far neither the justice department nor Mr. Trump have publicly addressed Ms. Comey’s termination. 

According to the Washington Post, the termination letter was signed by Francey Hakes, who was appointed director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys in July. Ms. Hakes previously worked in child protection and as a national security consultant, her profile at the justice department’s website states. 

“Ms. Hakes served as a prosecutor for more than 15 years, serving first as an Assistant District Attorney specializing in crimes against children, then as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of Georgia specializing in technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation,” the profile details. 

Ms. Hakes was also a Fox News commentator and is, according to Bloomberg Law, “loyal to the Trump agenda.” 

Neither the justice department nor the Southern District of New York could be reached for comment.