Kash Patel (Wikipedia) Kashyap Pramod Vinod Patel (born February 25, 1980) is an American lawyer, former federal prosecutor and official, and conspiracy theorist. He served as a National Security Council official, chief of staff to the acting U.S. secretary of defense, and senior advisor to the acting director of national intelligence, all during the first presidency of Donald Trump. In November 2024, President-elect Trump nominated Patel to succeed Christopher Wray as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.