Nearly a week after calling for the resignation of FBI Director Christopher Wray after it was learned that the agency failed to follow through on a tip regarding 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, the teenager accused of last week’s school shooting in Parkland, Gov. Rick Scott says the FBI is still not providing answers.
“It has been over a week since the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, and the FBI has still yet to release any information on how they failed to investigate the critical tip they received more than one month ago on Cruz’s potential to conduct a school shooting,” Scott said in a statement released by his office Thursday afternoon.
On January 5 of this year, the FBI received a tip regarding “Cruz’s gun ownership, desire to kill people, erratic behavior, and disturbing social media posts, as well as the potential of him conducting a school shooting.”
Last month’s tip was received on the FBI’s Public Access Line (PAL) tipline. The agency said that under established protocols, the information should have been assessed and determined to be “a potential threat to life.” Officials say the information should have been forwarded to the FBI’s Miami Field Office to take appropriate measures.The information was never forwarded.
“We have spoken with victims and families and deeply regret the additional pain this causes all those affected by this horrific tragedy,” Wray said in a statement released last Friday. In that statement Wray said he was “committed to getting to the bottom of what happened.”
On Monday, Scott called on the FBI to release the details about the tip and what went wrong. He says he is still waiting.
“A single 250-word statement from the Bureau admitting this inexcusable failure is not enough. Family members and loved ones of the victims deserve answers today and they should not be forced to wait in anguish as the FBI drags their feet,” Scott said.
Cruz is accused of walking into Stoneman Douglas High School last Wednesday afternoon with an AR-15 assault rifle and opening fire. Seventeen students and teachers were killed in the massacre. Cruz had a history of mental health issues, as well as a troubled history involving violence..