Investigators gave Alexis security clearance despite gun charge

WASHINGTON, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Federal contractors who checked Aaron Alexis' background knew he lied about his personal history but granted him a security clearance anyway, officials say.

The contractor, USIS, played down Alexis' arrest three years earlier, Navy officials disclosed, and left out that he had been charged with shooting out someone's tires, The Washington Post reported Monday.

Alexis went on a shooting rampage Sept. 16 at the Navy Yard, killing 12 people.

USIS conducted Alexis' background check under a contract with the federal Office of Personnel Managements. Last week, OPM said the background check was performed "in compliance with all investigative standards."

Documentation USIS provided to the Navy mentions Alexis had been involved in an argument with a construction worker, but not that he was charged with a gun-related crime.

The documents say investigators doing the background check talked only to Alexis and no one else about the incident. Alexis told them he did not disclose his arrest on the security check application because the charge was dismissed and he believed it had been removed from his record.

The lack of red flags allowed Alexis to get a security clearance in 2008, which he retained after he left the Navy in 2011, enabling him to work as a defense contractor.

A USIS spokesman, Ray Howell, said the company is forbidden from retaining background check files and could not comment.