India-born Preet Bharara, the powerful US Attorney who has facilitated many high-profile insider trading convictions, has agreed to remain in the position after meeting President-elect Donald Trump.
Appointed as the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York by outgoing US President Barack Obama in 2009, Bharara has earned the reputation of a “crusader” prosecutor.
“The President-elect asked, presumably because he’s a New Yorker and is aware of the great work that our office has done over the past seven years, asked to meet with me to discuss whether or not I’d be prepared to stay on as the United States attorney to do the work as we have done it, independently, without fear or favour for the last seven years,” Bharara said.
“We had a good meeting,” he said in a brief interaction with reporters after his meeting with Trump yesterday.
“I said I would absolutely consider staying on. I agreed to stay on,” said Bharara, who is in his late 40s. “I have already spoken to Senator (Jeff) Sessions, who is as you know is the nominee to be the attorney general,” said the top Indian-American attorney.