Chad Wolf, acting secretary of US Homeland Security, has resigned from his post, days after the violent mob attack at the Capitol last week.
"I am saddened to take this step, as it was my intention to serve the Department until the end of this Administration," Wolf said in a letter to the department obtained by CNN.
Pete Gaynor, the administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will be the acting secretary, Wolf said.
Wolf's resignation comes amid heightened security concerns in the wake of the US Capitol attack and just days before the transition in administrations to President-elect Joe Biden.
Wolf is the latest Cabinet Secretary to resign, following in the footsteps of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Transporation Secretary Elaine Chao who resigned soon after the pro-Trump insurrection at the Capitol.
Calling the rioters' behaviour "unconscionable" DeVos wrote in her resignation letter, "There is no mistaking the impact your rhetoric had on the situation, and it is the inflection point for me," CNN reported.
"Yesterday, our country experienced a traumatic and entirely avoidable event as supporters of the President stormed the Capitol building following a rally he addressed. As I'm sure is the case with many of you, it has deeply troubled me in a way that I simply cannot set aside," Chao said in a statement on Thursday.
Chaotic scenes unfolded at the Capitol as supporters of President Trump swarmed the building to protest the Electoral College vote, forcing a lockdown and confrontations with police. Several police officers sustained injuries, while five people died in the ensuing scuffle.
Several lawmakers slammed Trump for inciting violence, with some calling for his immediate impeachment and removal.
( With inputs from ANI )
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor