Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
Donald Trump Blames FBI For Not Preventing Parkland School Massacre
Trump tweeted the FBI spent too much time investigating Russia.
Donald Trump is under scrutiny for a tweet he sent in response to the school shooting that occurred in Parkland, Florida, last week.
As previously reported, the mass shooting suspect, 19-year-old former student Nikolas Cruz, has been charged with 17 counts of murder for gunning down 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. As details surface about the former student's mental and behavioral problems, Trump took to Twitter to blame the FBI for ignoring warning signs that may have prevented the incident.
"Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signals sent out by the Florida school shooter. This is not acceptable. They are spending too much time trying to prove Russian collusion with the Trump campaign - there is no collusion. Get back to the basics and make us all proud!" he tweeted on February 17.
As CNN reported, the FBI had been previously notified about Nikolas Cruz's behavior. In September, the FBI was warned about a possible school shooting threat by a YouTube user that had the same name as the suspect.
"Im going to be a professional school shooter," the user commented on a video. The owner of the video immediately contacted the FBI.
"No other information was included with that comment which would indicate a time, location or the true identity of the person who made the comment," FBI special agent in charge of the Miami division, Robert Lasky, said during a news conference. "The FBI conducted database reviews, checks but was unable to further identify the person who actually made the comment."
It was also revealed that the FBI received another tip about Cruz in January, just six weeks before the Parkland shooting. According to NBC News, someone who knew Cruz called the FBI tip line to report his "gun ownership, desire to kill people, erratic behavior, and disturbing social media posts, as well as the potential of him conducting a school shooting."
The FBI released an official apology admitting it failed to act on information regarding the Parkland shooting suspect.
"Under established protocols, the information provided by the caller should have been assessed as a potential threat to life. The information then should have been forwarded to the FBI Miami Field Office, where appropriate investigative steps would have been taken," it said. "We have determined that these protocols were not followed for the information received by the PAL on January 5. The information was not provided to the Miami Field Office, and no further investigation was conducted at that time."
Trump is currently under investigation for Russia's possible involvement in the 2016 presidential election. He has maintained that there was "no collusion" and the notion is a hoax. Last week, however, the Justice Department charged 13 Russians with interfering in the election.
As CNN reported, Trump's tweet has angered survivors of the shooting.
"17 innocent people were brutally murdered at my school, a place where they should have felt safe. Their lives were gone in an instant. You are the President of the United States and you have the audacity to put this on Russia as an excuse. I guess I should expect that from you," said one student.
Another added, "Oh my god. 17 OF MY CLASSMATES AND FRIENDS ARE GONE AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO MAKE THIS ABOUT RUSSIA???!! HAVE A DAMN HEART. You can keep all of your fake and meaningless 'thoughts and prayers'."
[Photo: Getty Images]
