Robert Mueller, the former special counsel who led the Trump-Russia investigation, dies at the age of 81

Robert Mueller III, the longtime FBI director who served as the special counsel overseeing the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, has died. He was 81 years old.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Mueller’s law firm, WilmerHale, told NBC News: “WilmerHale is mourning the passing of our friend and former partner, Bob Mueller. Bob was an outstanding leader and public servant and a person of integrity.”

“His service to our country, including as a decorated officer in the Marine Corps, as Director of the FBI, and at the Department of Justice, was exemplary and inspiring,” the statement said. “We are very proud to have had him as our partner. Our thoughts are with Bob’s family and loved ones at this time.”

Last year, Mueller’s family told the New York Times that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2021.

Mueller served as FBI director under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

He was first appointed by Bush in 2001 and became the longest-serving FBI director in history.

Mueller was confirmed by a Senate vote of 98-0 and began his duties just days before the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

In a 2014 speech, Mueller recalled Bush’s main question to him in the days after the attack: “What is the FBI doing to prevent the next terrorist attack?”

Mueller recalled that he didn’t have an answer at the time but changed the FBI’s work in the following years to find it.

“Our metric will no longer be the number of arrests, the number of cases, the number of convictions,” he added. “It answered that one question.”

Mueller’s tenure as FBI director continued under the Obama administration, the Democratic president even asked Mueller to continue the 10-year term of FBI director. He resigned in 2013.

In 2017, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed him as special counsel to look into Russia’s efforts to influence the results of the 2016 presidential election and any links to the Trump campaign.

Mueller became a target of President Donald Trump after the special counsel released a report detailing the investigation’s findings.

The report found that Russia interfered in the 2016 election in a comprehensive and systematic manner, including efforts to boost the Trump campaign and harm his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton. It did not establish a criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia.

After the news of Mueller’s death, Trump wrote on the Truth Social blog: “Robert Mueller just died. Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can’t hurt innocent people anymore!”

The report also detailed Trump’s frustration when he learned that a special counsel had been appointed to investigate his campaign and possible ties to Russia.

He called it “the worst thing that ever happened to me,” according to the report.

In 2019, Trump again called Mueller a “true never-Trumper” after the report came out.

Mueller’s attack on Mueller continued in 2025, early in his second term, when he signed an executive order severing WilmerHale’s relationship with the federal government.

At the time, Trump said the law firm was “rewarding” Mueller, accusing him of using “his prosecutorial powers to subvert the democratic process and pervert justice.”

Later, the Justice Department dropped efforts to target WilmerHale and other law firms after multiple judges ruled unconstitutional.

While serving as special counsel during Trump’s first administration, Mueller was widely respected by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle for his extensive legal work.

Mueller was also a military veteran who served in the Marine Corps as an officer for three years after completing a bachelor’s degree at Princeton University and a master’s degree at New York University.

He was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry for his military service.

Mueller was born in New York City and raised in Philadelphia. He earned his law degree from the University of Virginia and graduated in 1973.

He went on to work in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California in San Francisco and later in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. Mueller first took a position at the Justice Department in 1989 and served as an assistant to then-US Attorney Richard L. Thornburgh.