Senate Democrats allege the FBI was left scrambling for aircraft to respond to the Brown University mass shooting in December - as Director Kash Patel was using one of the jets in south Florida.
The ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee revealed that a plane and pilot shortage delayed the bureau's response to the incident, a bombshell claim that dramatically escalated Democratic attacks on the FBI chief.
The new accusations landed as outgoing Senator Dick Durbin posted images of Patel chugging a beer in the locker room with the US men's hockey team after their gold medal victory over Canada at the Winter Olympics in Italy -- an estimated $75,000 taxpayer-funded trip that Patel's office said included meetings with security officials and field agents.
'Kash Patel went to hang out at the Olympics on the taxpayer dime. It's irresponsible joyriding and a complete waste of our money,' Durbin wrote on X Tuesday, adding: 'He should reimburse you. I'm investigating.'
'Add this to the investigative file on Kash Patel,' he posted alongside the beer-chugging photo, as critics branded the FBI director more 'frat bro' than federal law enforcement chief.
A whistleblower told Durbin that the jet shortage in December was due to Patel's personal flight schedule.
Patel, an intelligence official in Trump's first term and a former conservative media figure, has faced a barrage of backlash for his jet-setting lifestyle while FBI Director.
Specifically, his harshest critics have pointed to his travel to sporting events and personal events with his country music star girlfriend Alexis Wilkins. He traveled to Pennsylvania for a pro-wrestling event where Wilkins was performing the National Anthem.
Senate Democrats revealed whistleblower claims that Kash Patel's personal travel on government planes led to delayed FBI responses to the Brown University shooting and Charlie Kirk assassination last year.
Patel went to Italy for meetings with security officials and agents in the region, his office told the Daily Mail. But while there, he decided to tack onto his trip attending the winter Olympics in Milan and watch men's hockey.
Senate Judiciary Democrats, led by ranking member Dick Durbin, demanded that Patel be investigated for using government flights for personal travel.
Durbin said that these new whistleblower revelations are getting added to the Democrat investigation that was opened in May into 'Justice Department use of aircraft for personal or political purposes amid recent reporting of Kash Patel's questionable use of government aircraft.'
In his Tuesday update, the retiring Democrat called for Patel's 'joyriding on government planes' to be investigated by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the DOJ Inspector General.
The DOJ referred the Daily Mail to the FBI and Inspector General's office when reached for comment.
A spokesperson for the FBI did not respond to the Daily Mail's inquiry, but the same person did post several times on X about the whistleblower claims.
Patel and his office have fiercely defended his trip to Italy, claiming it was essential to strengthen partnership with European allies and prepare for security for upcoming world events in the US - including the FIFA World Cup and 2026 Olympics in Los Angeles.
They also said he was in Milan because the FBI was assisting with security for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
However, an unclassified document distributed to federal agents providing a detailed breakdown of Patel’s schedule in Italy shows that he had significant chunks of personal time, according to the New York Times.
'The leaking of his minute-by-minute schedule is a criminal act that jeopardizes security and will not be taken lightly,' FBI Assistant Director for Public Affairs Ben Williamson said in a statement to the Times.
According to the schedule obtained by the Times, after landing in Rome on February 19, Patel had a late dinner with Texas billionaire and US Ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta.
On Friday Patel met for an hour with the head of Italy's domestic security agency, held a photo op with Italian law enforcement officials and signed a cybercrime cooperation deal before an 'aperitivo' at Italy's interior ministry.
He attended some ceremonial events before flying that night from Rome to Milan to attend the semi-final game between the US and Slovakia.
While Patel's Saturday schedule lists a 20-minute briefing with the Olympic security team and a half-hour tour of the joint security operations center, the period between 2:00 pm and 6:30 pm was reserved for 'personal time/cultural activities' followed by dinner with unspecified guests.
Senator Dick Durbin, who is retiring in 2026, said that Kash Patel should reimburse Americans for spending thousands to go to Italy where he attended the Olympics to watch the men's hockey team take home gold.
Durbin's whistleblower disclosures claim that Patel's management of the Bureau's resources 'harmed the FBI's ability to respond to the shooting at Brown University on December 13, 2025.'
'[T]he shooting reconstruction team was set to respond to the scene immediately, but was unable to fly out of Richmond, Virginia, using one of the FBI's planes,' Durbin wrote in a statement detailing the 'credible' whistleblower account.
'The whistleblower described how the team had to drive from Quantico, Virginia to Providence, Rhode Island overnight during a winter storm to reach the scene by 9:00 a.m. the following morning to immediately process evidence,' according to the claims.
Williamson admitted that Patel was 'visiting his elderly parents in Florida,' but called the claims that this caused a delayed response 'false and ridiculous.'
He explained FBI Boston had an emergency response team get to the scene of the Brown University shooting 'in under 2 hours' and that the case was not immediately assigned to the FBI because it was initially a state-led homicide investigation.
'There would not be a situation where the FBI delayed or couldn't send resources because of Director travel, especially in this case. This is a ridiculous claim,' Williamson wrote, adding that the Director's plane was not needed in the case.
He concluded: 'The FBI jumped all over this case and provided any and all resources needed in a timely manner.'
Patel has faced backlash in the past from critics who say he is using taxpayer-funded flights for person travel - like to attend events with his country music star girlfriend Alexis Wilkins.
The whistleblower account also claims that such travel impacted the FBI's shooting reconstruction team's ability to fly to Utah for the investigation in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk's assassination.
'[T]he team's deployment was delayed by at least a day because of a Bureau plane and pilot shortage caused by the Director's personal flights,' Durbin said the whistleblower detailed.
He added: 'FAA rules dictate the maximum flight duty, cumulative travel, and rest periods for pilots, and the FBI team could only travel after the pilots' mandated rest periods were completed.'
Williamson shot back on X with: 'The Brown U thing is totally false but the Charlie Kirk allegation is even more egregious.'
'Kash was in DC on 9/10 and in New York the next day for the 9/11 ceremonies - not personal travel. Durbin and whoever he's speaking to are full of it.'