Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who later led the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, died on Friday night. He was 81.

"With deep sadness, we are sharing the news that Bob passed away," his family said in a statement Saturday, asking that "their privacy be respected." A cause of death was not announced. His family disclosed in August 2025 that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2021.

The disclosure of his diagnosis came after the House Oversight Committee moved to subpoena Mueller to testify about the federal government's handling of the Epstein case. Mueller led the FBI when Epstein received a controversial plea deal in Florida in 2008.

President Trump responded on social media Saturday. "Robert Mueller just died. Good, I'm glad he's dead," Trump wrote. "He can no longer hurt innocent people!" Trump has long called the Russia investigation a "witch hunt" and sought to discredit Mueller throughout his first presidency and after. The two met in the Oval Office the day before his appointment in 2017, ostensibly to discuss the FBI director vacancy, though Mueller later testified under oath that he was not applying for the job.

Trump's post drew sharp criticism from Democrats. Sen. Adam Schiff of California said it showed the president's "basic indecency and unfitness for office." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Trump's post was designed to "distract you from rising gas prices, his aimless war, ICE abuses, and the Epstein files."

Others honored Mueller's legacy. Former President Barack Obama wrote that Mueller “was one of the finest directors in the history of the FBI” and heralded his “relentless commitment to the rule of law and his unwavering belief in our bedrock values.” Former President George W. Bush, who nominated Mueller to lead the FBI, said he "led the agency effectively" in the wake of 9/11. "Laura and I are deeply saddened by the loss of Robert Mueller. Bob dedicated his life to public service," Bush said.

Mueller took over the FBI a week before the 9/11 attacks and ran the bureau for 12 years, longer than anyone except former Director J. Edgar Hoover. He redirected thousands of agents from criminal cases to counterterrorism, transforming the bureau from a law enforcement agency into a national security one.

“In the wake of the September 11 attacks, it became clear that the FBI's number one priority must be the prevention of another terrorist attack,” Mueller said during a 2008 speech. Mueller held Senate-confirmed positions under presidents of both parties — George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

However, he is perhaps best known for investigating ties between Trump's campaign and Russia. When Mueller was first appointed special counsel by the Justice Department in 2017, Trump was reportedly despondent. "Oh, my God," he said. "This is the end of my presidency."

His report, released in 2019, found significant contact between the two sides but stopped short of alleging a criminal conspiracy.

Mueller also declined to clear Trump of obstruction of justice, writing then that he was "unable to reach that judgment." His team charged six people in the president's orbit, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Trump later pardoned both after leaving office.

Mueller was born in New York City in 1944 and raised in Philadelphia. He served three years as a Marine in Vietnam, beginning in 1968, where he led a rifle platoon and earned a Bronze Star for dragging a fellow Marine out of an ambush while under fire. He took a bullet to the leg in a later firefight and was back with his unit within three weeks. He also received a Purple Heart. He was a graduate of Princeton, earned a master's degree from New York University and a law degree from the University of Virginia.

Mueller, a registered Republican, later said he enlisted after a Princeton lacrosse teammate was killed in Vietnam. "One of the reasons I went into the Marine Corps was because we lost a very good friend," he said.

Mueller rarely spoke publicly after leaving government. In a 2020 interview, one of his only on-the-record conversations, he reflected on a career defined by service. "I've come to believe that it really does not matter which way you choose to serve," he said. "The only thing that we ask is that you work for your country, for your community."

Mueller is survived by his wife, Ann, whom he married in 1966, and their two daughters.