The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is asking the FBI for more information on what actions that agency took in the run up to the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.
Sen. Ron Johnson is asking FBI Director James Comey to provide him with more information about “actions taken by the Federal Bureau of Investigation before, during, and after” the Orlando terrorist attack at Pulse nightclub before the committee holds a possible inquiry into the massacre that killed 49 people.
The Wisconsin Republican is seeking data on surveillance of the gunman Omar Mateen, his online presence and whether they investigated his family members or followed up with reports from former coworkers that may have been red flags for the violence to come later.
CNN has reached out to the FBI for comment.
The letter also asks Comey if the FBI was aware of Mateen’s scouting of Walt Disney World as a potential target and his visits to the Pulse nightclub prior to the attack.
The aim of the inquiry, according to Johnson’s letter, is to “better understand the root causes of homegrown extremism, assess the vulnerabilities of so-called ‘soft’ targets, and oversee the work of federal law-enforcement entities.” Similar inquiries were conducted by the committee following the terrorist attacks in San Bernardino, California and Garland, Texas.
Johnson requested the FBI “produce this material as soon as possible,” but gave the bureau a deadline of June 29 to produce any classified or unclassified responses to his questions.