Manhattan attorney Geoffrey Berman resigns to 'respect normal operation of law'

New York [USA], June 21 : US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Geoffrey Berman, announced on Saturday that he will be leaving the office in light of Attorney General William Barr's decision "to respect the normal operation of law" and appoint Deputy US Attorney Audrey Strauss to the position.
"In light of Attorney General Barr's decision to respect the normal operation of law and have Deputy US Attorney Audrey Strauss become Acting US Attorney, I will be leaving the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, effective immediately," said the statement cited by Sputnik news agency.
The announcement followed the statement made earlier by Barr, in which he said that he asked the President to fire Berman, and Trump "has done so".
However, shortly after the statement became public, Trump sparked the uncertainty about it, telling the reporters that he was "not involved" in the decision, saying "that's his department, not my department".
Barr's statement responded to that of Berman, released earlier on Friday, in which he insisted that he had no intention to resign and said that he would step down if "presidentially-appointed nominee is confirmed in the Senate".
House Judiciary Committee said on Saturday in a statement that the investigation into the Berman's firing will be opened "as part of our broader investigation into Barr's unacceptable politisation of the Department of Justice".
Berman has been overseeing the prosecution of several Trump's associates, including the President's former lawyer Michael Cohen and current lawyer Rudy Giuliani.