FBI Director Kash Patel joins Team USA hockey in locker room celebration after gold medal win
US Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel looks on prior to the Men’s Gold Medal match between Canada and the United States on day 16 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 22, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Elsa/Getty Images)
(MILAN) — FBI Director Kash Patel joined in on Team USA hockey’s locker room celebrations in Italy shortly after the team won the gold medal.
The team beat Canada 2-1 at the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina on Sunday, marking the first such victory for the U.S. since the so-called “Miracle on Ice” game in Lake Placid, New York, in 1980.
Patel, a hockey fan, was said to have had meetings in Italy prior to attending the game. Ben Williamson, an FBI spokesperson, said on social media that Patel’s trip had been previously scheduled. He added that “any other personal expenses would be reimbursed.”
Patel on Sunday evening posted on social media a statement, which he said was for “the very concerned media.”
“[Y]es, I love America and was extremely humbled when my friends, the newly minted Gold Medal winners on Team USA, invited me into the locker room to celebrate this historic moment with the boys — Greatest country on earth and greatest sport on earth,” he said in the post.
A video obtained by ABC News showed Patel wearing a USA shirt in the locker room, where he’s seen singing along with members of the team. After he takes a swig, shakes his bottle and pounds the table, a member of the team places a gold medal around his neck.
“Unity, Sacrifice, Attitude – what it takes to be the best in the world. These men live and breathe it,” Patel wrote on social media, where he posted photos of himself celebrating with the team in the locker room.
Patel added, ” Now Team USA are gold medal champions, legends standing on the shoulders of giants. Thank you for representing the greatest country on earth, in the greatest game ever created.”
He included several emojis — a fist bump, American flag and a hockey stick — then said, “congrats boys.”
Steven Cheung, the White House’s communications director, appeared on Monday to publicly defend Patel and the video, telling MS Now reporter Carol Leonnig on X, “don’t be mad because America won.”
Cheung was responding to Leonnig, who posted a video of Patel on social media and said the FBI had said it was “strictly a business trip.” Cheung said Patel was also meeting with security teams in Italy.
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow contributed to this report.
Spencer and Monique Tepe are seen in this undated photo. (Courtesy Rob Misleh)
(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — The Columbus, Ohio, police chief is speaking out for the first time since the mysterious murders of dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife, Monique Tepe.
The couple was found shot to death in their home on Dec. 30, Columbus police said. Their two young children were found safe inside.
Authorities said they believe the couple was killed between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. on their home’s second floor.
Earlier this week, police released video of a person of interest. Police said the video showed an individual walking in an alley near the victims’ house during that 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. timeframe.
A motive hasn’t been identified, the chief said.
“I know it’s frustrating for people, I know they want answers,” Bryant said. “As soon as we’re able to provide more information, we will absolutely be coming back to talk about that. … But right now it’s premature for us to be able to say what the motive is, or, we don’t have a suspect identified at this point.”
She added, “We want to bring some justice to the family.”
The Tepes’ brother-in-law, Rob Misleh, said they spent Christmas together days before the murders.
“We did Christmas night together, and then the following day we just did a, kind of, post-Christmas lounging and watching movies and had dinner. And the next morning they left,” he told ABC News’ “Good Morning America.” “How would I ever know that would be the last time I would’ve hung out with Spence like that?”
“We were totally blindsided by what happened,” he said.
The Tepes’ family and friends will come together on Sunday for a celebration of life service.
Stock image of police lights. Douglas Sacha/Getty Images
(PUEBLO, Colo.) — At least five people are dead following a pile-up crash involving dozens of vehicles in Colorado that occurred as high winds blew dirt, making for low to zero visibility, authorities said.
The incident occurred around 10 a.m. local time Tuesday on I-25 near Pueblo, which is about 40 miles south of Colorado Springs, authorities said.
Over 30 vehicles, including seven semis, were involved in the crash, according to Colorado State Patrol.Pickups pulling horse trailers, SUVs and passenger vehicles were also involved, according to Maj. Brian Lyons with Colorado State Patrol.
The pile-up occurred during “adverse weather conditions,” Lyons said, with heavy winds blowing dirt and causing “brownout” conditions.
“Visibility was next to nothing,” Lyons said during a press briefing Tuesday.
There were four fatalities in separate vehicles — two men from Walsenburg, Colorado, and two women, one from Rye and one from Pueblo — authorities said Tuesday.
A fifth person who had been transported to a hospital later succumbed to his injuries, Colorado State Patrol said Wednesday.
Another 28 people were transported to area hospitals, with moderate to serious injuries, Colorado State Patrol said.
Authorities were working to account for everyone in the vehicles involved in the crash, Lyons said.
One of the vehicles was a pickup hauling a gooseneck trailer containing 32 goats, Colorado State Patrol said. Four of the goats died, while the rest were safely removed, it said.
Northbound I-25 was closed for several hours as crews worked to clear vehicles, before reopening late Tuesday.
“Due to low visibility, drivers are urged to delay traveling until conditions improve,” Colorado State Patrol said. “If travel is necessary, avoid I-25 in this area, use caution, and reduce speed.”
High wind warnings were in effect for the region on Tuesday. The National Weather Service in Pueblo warned that “significant blowing dust” was possible on the plains, where gusts could be up to 65 mph. Gusts of at least 85 mph were also forecast for mountain areas, it said.
A memorial dedicated to the 19 children and two adults murdered on May 24, 2022 during a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School is seen on January 06, 2026 in Uvalde, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
(CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas) — As soon as Wednesday afternoon, a Texas jury will begin deliberating whether a law enforcement officer should be held criminally responsible for failing to act in the face of one of the worst mass shootings in U.S. history.
At issue is whether Gonzales — one of the first officers to arrive at Robb Elementary on May 24, 2022 — ignored his training and endangered dozens of students when he responded to the shooting.
Nineteen students and two teachers died, with police officers waiting 77 minutes to confront the gunman. While the shooting response has been the subject of hearings and investigations, the case against Gonzales marks the first criminal trial related to the shooting and the delayed police response.
Prosecution’s closing argument
The jury has an opportunity to “set the bar” for how officers should respond to school shootings, prosecutor Bill Turner said on Wednesday.
“If it’s appropriate to stand outside hearing [hundreds of] shots while children are being slaughtered, that is your decision to tell the state of Texas,” Turner said.
While teachers and students were sheltering in their classrooms — doing exactly what their training taught them to do in an active shooter scenario — the police officer trained to help them failed to act, Turner said. Turner argued that each gunshot fired at Robb Elementary was “notice to Adrian Gonzalez to advance toward the gunfire,” but he failed to follow his training and act in the crucial first minutes of the shooting.
“If you have a duty to act, you can’t stand by while the child is in imminent danger,” Turner said.
Turner pointed jurors to the testimony of teaching aide Melodye Flores, a key prosecution witness who said she pleaded with Gonzales to intervene. Turner argued that the warning from Flores and the clear sound of gunfire should have triggered Gonzales to act.
“The training is, you hear shots, you go to the gunfire. He heard shots, and Melodye Flores was pointing where to go to the gunfire. There’s nothing complicated about that,” Turner said.
Defense’s closing argument
Convicting Gonzales will send a clear message to officers who respond to this country’s next mass shooting, defense attorney Jason Goss said.
“What you tell police officers is, ‘Don’t go in. Don’t react. Don’t respond,'” Goss warned jurors. “We cannot have law enforcement feel that way.”
Goss argued that prosecutors tried to “massage the facts” of the case and “twist them all into a pretzel” to argue Gonzales failed to act. According to Goss, Gonzales did the best he could with the information he had when he arrived at Robb Elementary. While other officers arrived within the same timeframe, only Gonzales is being penalized for attempting to take action that day, he argued.
Goss attempted to empathize with the jurors and the families of victims, arguing he understood the desire for criminal accountability. But he reminded jurors, “The monster who hurt those kids is dead.”
But convicting Gonzales, Goss argued, would do “an injustice” for the victims of the shooting.
“You do not honor their memory by doing an injustice in their name,” he said.
What is he charged with?
Gonzales was charged with 29 felony counts of abandoning/endangering children — one count for each of the 19 students who died in the shooting and the 10 children who survived in classroom 112.
Each count carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison, and Gonzales could spend the rest of his life in prison if he is convicted. While juries in Texas sometimes determine criminal sentences, Gonzales has opted to be sentenced by Judge Sid Harle if he is convicted.
What happened to the police chief’s case?
Along with Gonzales, prosecutors also charged former Uvalde schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo, who was the scene commander during the Robb shooting. His case has been indefinitely delayed due to a pending civil lawsuit involving the tactical unit that ultimately breached the classroom and killed the shooter.
Are there any comparable cases?
According to Phil Stinson — a professor at Bowling Green State University in Ohio who maintains a database of police officers who have been arrested — the case against Gonzales is uncommon but not unprecedented.
Prosecutors in Florida attempted to similarly charge a law enforcement officer for his response to the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Seventeen were killed when a gunman opened fire that day, Feb. 14, 2018, in Parkland.
A jury in 2023 acquitted Scot Peterson, the former Broward County sheriff’s deputy, after he was charged with child neglect and culpable negligence for his alleged inaction following the shooting.
