Letter to Hon. Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Judiciary Republicans Demand Answers From State, DHS And FBI On Terrorist Who Attacked Texas Synagogue

Letter

Dear Director Wray:
We are writing to request information about the case of Malik Faisal Akram, a British
national who held four people hostage at the Beth Israel Congregation in Colleyville, Texas, for
hours on January 15th, and was killed by FBI agents after the hostages escaped. Akram was
reportedly demanding the release of Dr. Aaifa Siddiqui, a Pakistani national currently serving
an 86-year sentence at a prison in Texas for attempted murder and armed assault on U.S.
officers in Afghanistan in 2010.

Akram reportedly arrived in the United States legally in December 2021.
Regarding this entry, law enforcement sources have said:

Akram was not on a U.S. government watch list;

British intelligence officials have advised their U.S. counterparts that a preliminary
review of their databases similarly show no derogatory information about Akram; and

Akram apparently traveled to the United States under the terms of the United
Kingdom's membership in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program.

And yet, Akram's brother in the United Kingdom told reporters that Akram "had
been known to the counterterrorism police in Britain." Though the Greater Manchester Police
Department and the United Kingdom's counterterrorism division declined to comment on that assertion, a British security source told reporters on January 18th that Akram was indeed known
to U.K. intelligence. NBC News reports that Akram "was the subject of a short, low-level
investigation by the U.K.'s MI5 domestic intelligence agency in the second half of 2020." The
investigation was "based on information that he may have been involved in Islamist terrorism."

According to NBC News, "[w]hen there was no indication of a terrorist threat, … Akram joined
approximately 40,000 other closed "subjects of interest' in Britain who have been investigated
but not found to be plotting terrorist attacks."

In addition to being the subject of a security investigation, Akram also reportedly had a criminal record. According to Akram's brother, Akram was arrested in the 1990s when he was 19 and sent to a young offenders' institute, and was later sentenced to six months in prison for "violent disorder" for wielding a baseball bat during a family feud with his cousins.

Akram also apparently had mental health issues that, if true, would potentially have
made Akram inadmissible to the United States. Akram's brother in the United Kingdom
told reporters that Akram was "a deeply troubled man" and added: "It's well known,
everybody in the town knows, he has mental health issues."

In order to better understand the FBI's conduct in this matter, please answer the
following questions no later than February 8, 2022:

1. Does the FBI consider Akram to be an international terrorist, particularly a jihadist or
Islamic fundamentalist terrorist? If so, please explain. If not, why not?

2. Please describe the intelligence sharing relationship and protocol between the FBI and the
United Kingdom. In your response, please describe all shared databases and other
information sharing mechanisms, their purpose and how they can be used to understand
derogatory information relating to individuals and organizations of concern.

3. What kinds of communications, if any, did the FBI have with the United Kingdom with
respect to Akram prior to the attack?

4. What kinds of communications, if any, did the FBI have with the United Kingdom with
respect to Akram after the attack?

5. When did the FBI become aware of Akram's intent to travel to the United States?

6. When did the FBI become aware of Akram's actual travel to the United States?

7. Upon arrival in the United States, did the FBI have him under surveillance?

8. Has the FBI determined whether or not Akram is part of a larger cell or terrorist
operation?

9. President Biden has indicated that Akram purchased the handgun he possessed during the
attack illegally, off the streets. Is that accurate? How did Akram acquire the handgun that
he possessed during the attack? Is the FBI investigating the illegal seller?

10. Would a background check of Akram have revealed his criminal record, mental health
issues or whether the United Kingdom classified him as a national security threat?

11. Prior to his gun purchase, did any law enforcement agency, including INTERPOL,
submit Akram for entry in the NICS Audit Log Review monitoring program? If so, what
agencies and on what dates?

12. Did any law enforcement authority ever submit Akram for entry onto any of the NICS
Indices? If so, which authorities, on what dates, and what was the justification provided?

13. Does NICS possess any records or evidence to suggest that Akram was ever denied or
delayed the ability to purchase a firearm at any time? If so, on what date and what
records remain from these transactions or attempted transactions?

14. The hallmark of success in preventing international terrorism attacks within the United
States after 9/11 is our ability to prevent terrorism threats from entering the United States.
How did this system break down in this case?

15. Please detail the efforts the FBI devotes to international terrorism cases, including those
that specifically involve jihadism and Islamic fundamentalism.

In addition to providing answers to the above questions, we request that you schedule a
briefing to discuss the answers with our respective staff. Thank you for your attention to this
important matter.

Sincerely,[...]

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