Patel: FBI Nabbed Third Most Wanted Fugitive Since Jan. 20

The FBI has captured its third most wanted fugitive since President Donald Trump took office, Director Kash Patel said.

In a Tuesday night post on social platform X, Patel said it is "not an accident" the bureau nabbed its third fugitive on the "Ten Most Wanted" list since Jan. 20.

The FBI director framed the arrest as the result of a collaboration between his agency and the Justice Department, led by Attorney General Pam Bondi.

"When you let good cops be good cops, this is what happens," Patel wrote. "This administration is giving the new FBI and AG Bondi the resources to get the job done — and we won't stop."

While Patel did not provide any details on the latest apprehension, his social media post came hours after he announced the arrest of alleged MS-13 senior leader Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales, who was wanted for allegedly directing the gang's activity in the United States, Mexico, and El Salvador.

Bardales was taken into custody in Mexico on Monday and will reportedly be extradited to the U.S. The FBI was offering a $250,000 reward for information leading to his capture.

"I can now confirm that last night, working with the Justice Department and other interagency partners, the FBI has extradited one of our 'Ten Most Wanted' from Mexico — one we believe to be a key senior leader of MS-13, Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales," Patel said in a statement posted on X. "This is a major victory both for our law enforcement partners and for a safer America."

The Mexican government first announced the arrest of Bardales on Monday, according to Newsweek, and he was reportedly apprehended during an operation in the mountains of Veracruz.

Bardales' detention and extradition reportedly came just weeks after Mexico's arrest and handover of more than 29 cartel figures to the United States, including drug kingpin Rafael Caro Quintero, who allegedly orchestrated the murder of a Drug Enforcement Administration agent in 1985.

MS-13 is one of eight Latin American criminal enterprises the Trump administration declared foreign terrorist organizations last month.

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