May 30 (UPI) -- Bernard Kerik, New York City's police commissioner on Sept.11, 2001, died Thursday at the age of 69.
Kerik was hailed as a hero for his response to the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, but fell from grace after pleading guilty to federal corruption charges and tax crimes in the years that followed.
F.B.I director Kash Patel said in a statement on social media Thursday night that Kerik had died "after a private battle with illness."
"With over forty years of service in law enforcement and national security, he dedicated his life to protecting the American people," Patel wrote.
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