Crossword Genius

Retired FBI agent sued criminal and cooled down (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

defused

'cooled down' is the definition.

'retired fbi agent sued criminal' is the wordplay.
'retired' is a reversal indicator.
'fbi agent' becomes 'fed'.
'criminal' is an anagram indicator.
'fed' in reverse letter order is 'def'.
'sued' is an anagram of 'used'.
'def'+'used'='DEFUSED'

'and' acts as a link.

(Another definition for defused that I've seen is " Made bomb safe".)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.