{"id":3149,"date":"2018-02-16T10:38:00","date_gmt":"2018-02-16T10:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fbijohn.com\/index.php\/2018\/02\/16\/fbi-admits-failure-shooting-suspect\/"},"modified":"2023-07-31T12:03:46","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T12:03:46","slug":"fbi-admits-failure-shooting-suspect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fbijohn.com\/fbi-admits-failure-shooting-suspect\/","title":{"rendered":"Answers Sought After FBI Admits Failure to Follow Lead on Shooting Suspect"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
WASHINGTON (Sinclair Broadcast Group) \u2014 The Federal Bureau of
Investigation admitted Friday that it received a tip
about Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz in January and failed to follow
up, prompting questions about what the FBI does with leads it receives from the
public and whether a devastating tragedy could have been averted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone close to Cruz called the FBI on January 5 to alert them that he was
violent, armed, and might conduct a school shooting. Just over a month later,
authorities say he walked into the Parkland, Florida high school that had expelled him and did exactly that, killing 17 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The FBI confirmed that protocols were not followed and the Miami field office
was never notified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is now clear that the warning signs were there and tips to the FBI were missed,\u201d
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. \u201cWe see the tragic
consequences of those failures.\u201d Sessions has ordered the deputy attorney general
to review the bureau\u2019s handling of the tip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is seeking a Senate investigation of the FBI\u2019s inaction,
and Florida Gov. Rick Scott said in a statement that an admission of error and an
apology is not enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe constantly promote \u2018see something, say something,\u2019 and a courageous person
did just that to the FBI. And the FBI failed to act. \u2018See something, say something\u2019
is an incredibly important tool and people must have confidence in the follow
through from law enforcement. The FBI Director needs to resign,\u201d Scott said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former FBI agents say it is too soon to cast blame for this tragic error, but the
public needs assurance that if they see something and say something, the FBI will
do something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe people calling in, they did exactly what we tell them to do,\u201d said former FBI
special agent and spokesman John Iannarelli, warning that the FBI cannot afford to discourage future tips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s what the bureau recognized today looking at it\u2026,\u201d said James
Wedick who spent 35 years with the FBI and headed an anti-corruption unit in
California. \u201cIf you\u2019re going to put out a hotline, make sure you have the capability
to review what is on the hotline.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Given the prevalence of school shootings today and the amount of concern they
raise among the general public, Wedick said this is the kind of tip that should be
handled thoroughly and expeditiously, like terrorism and civil rights cases in past
decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou get a remark that somebody\u2019s claiming he wants to be a professional shooter,
that\u2019s something that you need to work to the Nth degree to figure out if you can
identify this person,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In retrospect, the January 5 call was eerily prescient. According to the FBI, the
person reported that Cruz owned a gun, wanted to kill people, made disturbing
social media posts, and could attack a school. As a potential threat to life, it should
have been investigated by local FBI agents in Florida. It was not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have spoken with victims and families, and deeply regret the additional pain
this causes all those affected by this horrific tragedy,\u201d FBI Director Christopher
Wray said in a statement. \u201cAll of the men and women of the FBI are dedicated to
keeping the American people safe, and are relentlessly committed to improving all
that we do and how we do it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thomas Veivia, a former FBI special agent who investigated the Sandy Hook
school shooting in 2012, expects an in-depth internal investigation of how and why
this tip fell through the cracks is already underway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnce the investigation is completed and the cause determined, corrective action
will be taken,\u201d Veivia said. \u201cThis could be the result of a technological system
failure or human error. The fact that the statement was released would indicate that
the investigation has error. The fact that the statement was released would indicate
that the investigation has already started.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tip came in on the FBI\u2019s general call line, where call takers are supposed to
record information, run basic database searches, and pass that all on to agents in
the relevant field office for investigation. According to the Washington Post that
handoff never happened, and it is not yet clear why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The call center receives thousands of tips a day, which former agents say is not an
excuse for failing to follow up but is important to take into account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese leads are received every single day in various different matters,\u201d Iannarelli
said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CNN obtained video from a neighbor who said Cruz is caught on camera doing
target practice in a back yard of a home last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bureau is empowered to conduct limited inquiries upon receiving a tip. If they
find enough evidence to open an assessment, that enables them to use more
investigative tools for a short period of time, after which they have to decide
whether to pursue an official investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re soliciting this info from the public,\u201d Wedick said. \u201cIf the public starts to
think they\u2019re giving us info that we\u2019re not doing anything with\u2026we can\u2019t have
that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even before Friday\u2019s revelation, the FBI was facing intense scrutiny for its
response to another tip that may have been related to Cruz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last September, a Mississippi bail bondsman contacted the FBI to report a
troubling comment posted below one of his YouTube videos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n