CBS News
Government watchdog launches probe into new FBI headquarters site selection
Washington — The internal watchdog for the government agency that manages federal properties is launching an investigation into the process behind the selection of a site in Maryland for the FBI’s new headquarters, according to a letter released Thursday.
For years, the General Services Administration and FBI were considering three locations in Virginia and Maryland to replace the crumbling headquarters in downtown Washington, D.C. Lawmakers from both states lobbied heavily to bring the new building to their respective locations.
Earlier this month, the GSA announced that it had selected Greenbelt, Maryland, as the bureau’s new home. The pick prompted an unusual public spat between the head of the agency and FBI Director Christopher Wray, who expressed concerns about the culmination of the yearslong process to select the site.
“I had hoped this message would include our enthusiastic support for the way GSA arrived at its selection,” Wray wrote in an email to FBI employees reviewed by CBS News at the time. “Unfortunately, we have concerns about fairness and transparency in the process and GSA’s failure to adhere to its own site selection plan.”
The selection of the Maryland site also drew pushback from Virginia lawmakers. Democratic Sen. Mark Warner wrote to acting Inspector General Robert Erickson two weeks ago expressing his concerns about the process.
Responding to Warner on Thursday, Erickson wrote that the GSA’s Office of the Inspector General is “initiating an evaluation of GSA’s selection of the site,” with the objective being “to assess the agency’s process and procedures for the site selection to relocate the FBI Headquarters.”
“We intend to begin this work immediately and will share with you and the relevant committees a copy of any report which may result from this evaluation,” Erickson wrote.
The fight over the new FBI headquarters
Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Wray — who was tapped to lead the FBI in 2017 — wrote in his message to bureau employees that he was concerned about “a potential conflict of interest involving the site selection authority and whether changes [the individual in charge] made in the final stage of the process adhered to the site selection criteria.” The bureau’s concerns about the process, he added, remained “unresolved.”
GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan shot back in a public statement of her own, accusing Wray of making “inaccurate claims directed at our agency, our employees, and our site selection plans and process.”
“Any suggestion that there was inappropriate interference is unfounded. The choice of Greenbelt, Maryland, is fully consistent with the decision-making process as well as all laws, regulations, and ethical considerations,” Carnahan’s statement said. “We stand behind the process, the decision, and all of the public servants who carefully followed the process and made a good decision on behalf of the FBI and the public.”
During congressional testimony earlier this month, Carnahan revealed that the GSA’s legal counsel reviewed Wray’s concerns and found them to be without merit.
Members of Virginia’s congressional delegation welcomed news of the inspector general’s probe in a statement on Thursday.
“Given the overwhelming evidence suggesting that the [GSA] administered a site selection process fouled by politics, we agree that an inspector general investigation is the appropriate next step. We applaud the inspector general for moving quickly and encourage him to move forward to complete a careful and thorough review. In the meantime, the GSA must pause all activities related to the relocation until the IG’s investigation is complete,” said the group of lawmakers, including Warner and Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine.
Following the public dustup between Wray and the GSA administrator, Maryland Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer, who had been a vocal advocate for the Greenbelt location, said he was “disappointed” by Wray’s stance and hoped that he would comply with GSA’s decision. He pushed back against any insinuation that the decision was political, arguing Greenbelt is less expensive and closer to the Metro than the proposed Virginia site, making transportation for employees more convenient.
The FBI did not immediately respond to CBS News’ request for comment on the new inspector general’s investigation. A GSA spokesperson said the agency “continues to welcome a review of our decision-making process for the FBI headquarters site selection” and stands by the decision.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
CBS Philadelphia
Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.