Bernard Kerik, who served as New York City's police commissioner on 9/11 and later pleaded guilty to tax fraud before being pardoned, has died. He was 69. FBI Director Kash Patel said that Kerik's death Thursday came after an unspecified "private battle with illness."

His meteoric rise to become New York City’s chief law enforcement officer was later tarnished after he pleaded guilty to federal corruption and tax crimes.

FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed his death on Thursday on social media, saying it came “after a private battle with illness.”