September 11 Attacks
The 9/11 Commission Report stated that in late August 2001, Fuller was given a lead on 9-11 hijacker Khalid al-Mihdhar. Fuller was instructed to open an intelligence case and attempt to find al-Mihdhar in the U.S. within the next 30 days. It was Fuller's first counterterrorism lead. He checked New York databases and the New York hotel listed on al-Mihdhar's U.S. entry visa. When nothing showed up, Fuller sent a lead to the FBI office in Los Angeles on September 11, because al-Mihdhar had originally entered the U.S. at Los Angeles International Airport in January 2000.
A Department of Justice Office of Inspector General (OIG) report from November 2004, which was publicly released in 2006, provides a more detailed examination of Fuller's actions during his investigation. The FBI New York Field Office opened a full field intelligence investigation to locate al-Mihdhar on August 29, 2001. Fuller was given the assignment on August 30, without any particular priority, and another investigation kept him from starting until September 4. Fuller first filled out lookout request forms for the INS and U.S. Customs Service on al-Mihdhar. By September 5, Fuller had requested New York City criminal history, NCIC criminal history, credit and motor vehicle checks on al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi, who was mentioned as an associate in the initial lead on al-Mihdhar. Fuller stated to the OIG that he conducted a ChoicePoint search on both men. However, the FBI located records on al-Hazmi in that database soon after September 11, 2001.
The OIG report did not fault Fuller for his efforts on the investigation. Rather, it stated the New York Field Office should have assigned the search more priority and resources.
Read more about this topic: Robert Fuller (FBI)
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