FBI response to Brown mass shooting was delayed because Kash Patel was in Florida with one of the agency’s jets: report

A whistleblower is claiming that FBI Director Kash Patel’s use of a bureau jet delayed the law enforcement agency’s ability to respond to the Brown University mass shooting late last year.

Agents from the FBI’s evidence response team were reportedly delayed in reaching Brown University following a December mass shooting, which left two dead and nine injured, because Patel reportedly had the plane in Florida.

A whistleblower gave an account of the situation to Senator Richard Durbin, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee. He sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office and the Justice Department’s Inspector General’s office on Tuesday accusing Patel of hindering the agency’s ability to conduct critical investigative tasks by misusing its resources, according to MS NOW.

Patel was reportedly in South Florida with one jet and had placed a hold on the second jet for another FBI team that would not typically respond to the scene of a mass shooting, according to sources who spoke to the broadcaster. The sources said Patel was in Florida on the day of the shooting and did not fly back until the following day.

An FBI spokesperson disputed the claims in a response to MSNOW but said they would look into the situation to determine what exactly happened. Another FBI official reportedly told MSNOW that Patel was in Florida visiting his elderly parents.

In Durbin’s letter, he claims that Patel’s “misplaced priorities and poor management of the FBI’s resources — including its aircraft — also harmed the FBI’s ability to respond to the shooting at Brown University on December 13, 2025.”

According to the whistleblower, Patel reportedly reserved the second plane for the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team, which confused FBI officials because numerous SWAT teams and FBI field office officials were already on the scene and were capable of responding to a hostage situation.

The FBI’s evidence response teams are responsible for collecting evidence and gathering information from crime scenes. While field offices also have evidence collection agents, the Quantico-based evidence team is composed of some of the agency’s most skilled and experienced members. That team is often the one to respond to mass shootings.

Durbin is now calling for an investigation and accusing Patel of “joyriding” with the agency’s jets.

“Since his confirmation as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Kash 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,” he wrote in his letter to the GAO.

Patel has faced near-constant criticism for his use of the agency’s jet. He has used it to attend a golf outing in Scotland, to attend a wrestling match in Pennsylvania, to see his girlfriend, country singer Ashley Wilkins, perform, and most recently, to fly to Milan to watch the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team.

On the same day Patel was watching the hockey game in Italy, a man arrived at Mar-a-Lago with a shotgun and gasoline canisters. He was killed by law enforcement at the scene. At the same time, the Nancy Guthrie disappearance investigation is still ongoing, and American tourists are trapped in Mexico following the government’s killing of cartel kingpin El Mencho.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, citing the whistleblower report, has called for Patel’s resignation.

“The FBI cannot function under a cloud of repeated leadership failures. Few roles carry greater responsibility to keep Americans safe,” she wrote on X. “Kash Patel must resign.”

Durbin, citing a “credible source,” said Patel allegedly told FBI field office personnel that “If you have golf, hockey, fishing, or hunting and beautiful sights, you’re going to see a lot of me.”

“I request that the GAO’s ongoing review address the new information outlined below and that the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General (DOJ OIG) investigate Director Patel’s misuse or mismanagement of government resources,” Durbin wrote in his letter.

Patel is required to use an agency jet for travel and is entitled to take time off as part of his employment with the bureau.

The Independent has requested comment from Patel.