A top Senate Democrat alleged on Tuesday that FBI director Kash Patel’s personal travel and decision-making have undermined high-profile investigations, citing a whistleblower report.
Senator Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee, wrote in a letter to two government watchdogs that Patel has “seemingly engaged in what amounts to irresponsible joyriding on DoJ and FBI-operated aircraft at the expense of the American taxpayer and to the detriment of ongoing bureau operations”.
A whistleblower told Durbin’s staff that the FBI’s shooting reconstruction team was delayed in responding to the Utah university where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated in September because of a pilot shortage caused by Patel’s personal travel.
Pilots had to complete a mandatory rest period before flying the team of investigators, tasked with analyzing and reconstructing shooting scenes, to Utah, according to Durbin’s letter. Reuters could not independently verify the whistleblower’s claims.