Advertisement

FBI to assist with VA investigation

The FBI will assist the Department of Justice, but will not launch a criminal probe.

By Matt Bradwell
FBI Director James Comey before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
FBI Director James Comey before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. UPI/Kevin Dietsch | License Photo

WASHINGTON, June 11 (UPI) -- Officials from the U.S. Justice Department have asked the FBI to assist in the ongoing review of materials related to the ongoing VA probe.

The request is not for a criminal probe -- as many politicians are calling for -- but rather assistance reviewing the documents and evidence regarding unacceptably long wait times at Veterans Affairs hospitals around the country.

Advertisement

Internal investigations have produced evidence that schedulers nationwide were pressured by supervisors to make it appear as if patients were receiving care with two weeks, but were instead placed on up-to-months long waiting lists.

In spite of the resignation of former VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, lawmakers are calling for criminal investigations, prosecutions and mass firings of those deemed responsible.

"This report makes it clear that the only people benefiting from our current VA health care system are the bureaucrats who put their own bonuses over veterans' care," Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) said Monday.

"President Obama must direct the FBI to investigate the allegations of criminal misconduct. Our nation's veterans deserve access to a health-care system that puts their needs as the top priority."

Advertisement

The FBI's involvement, as of now, will only be investigatory and administrative.

Latest Headlines