Only person in US history to lead CIA, FBI passes away
(MENAFN) William H. Webster, the only person in U.S. history to have led both the FBI and the CIA, has died at the age of 101, according to his family.
Before taking on these top roles, Webster served as a judge. He became FBI Director in 1978, a time when the bureau was grappling with public distrust following corruption and surveillance scandals. He held the position for nearly a decade before moving on to lead the CIA from 1987 to 1991, serving under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.
His family remembered him as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and patriot. The FBI honored him as a “dedicated public servant” who devoted over six decades to national service, saying it would be “forever grateful” for his work.
Born on March 6, 1924, in St. Louis, Missouri, Webster served as a U.S. Navy lieutenant during both World War II and the Korean War. He earned his law degree from Washington University in 1949 and went on to work as a federal prosecutor and district judge. When he took charge of the FBI, the agency was still dealing with the fallout of warrantless surveillance and illegal break-ins. Just weeks into his leadership, a federal grand jury indicted former bureau officials for unlawful raids against associates of far-left fugitives.
Webster once remarked that the heads of the CIA and FBI should be ready to resign rather than comply with any order they believe to be wrong. During his tenure at the CIA, he navigated the agency through the aftermath of the Iran-Contra scandal, in which senior U.S. officials had secretly sold weapons to Iran—despite an arms embargo—and used the proceeds to fund Nicaraguan rebels in violation of congressional restrictions.
He stepped down in 1991 but continued contributing to public service, offering guidance on homeland security issues and receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his lifetime of dedication.
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