Internal government emails have revealed that FBI Director Kash Patel participated in an exclusive “VIP snorkel” excursion around the sunken USS Arizona memorial last August.
While the FBI originally reported the Hawaii trip as strictly professional – highlighting meetings with law enforcement – they omitted this visit to the restricted wreckage which serves as a watery tomb for over 900 sailors and Marines.
The outing, coordinated by military officials allowed Patel to swim over the hallowed site where public diving is strictly prohibited.
Military records show participants were instructed “not to touch/come into contact with” the wreckage and were briefed on the “historic significance of the Memorial as the final resting place/tomb for hundreds of service members.”
The revelation has sparked intense criticism regarding the blending of official business with leisure.
Marine veteran Hack Albertson, who performs authorized maintenance dives on the ship, called the move inappropriate, stating,” It’s like having a bachelor party at a church. It’s hallowed ground.”
The FBI defended the trip as part of “public national security engagements,” while Patel’s office dismissed claims of impropriety asserting the excursion was “a historical tour to honor heroes who died on the USS Arizona – not a party.”
