Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) says it is “unacceptable” that one of the San Bernardino, Calif., shooters was able to enter the country on a fiancee visa, after a congressional report revealed flaws in the vetting process.
“After reviewing Tashfeen Malik’s immigration file, it is clear that immigration officials did not thoroughly vet her application,” Goodlatte said in a statement Saturday.
{mosads}“Visa security is critical to national security, and it’s unacceptable that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services did not fully vet Malik’s application and instead sloppily approved her visa,” he added.
Malik, a Pakistani citizen by way of Saudi Arabia, entered the country in July 2014 when she married Syed Rizwan Farook, an American citizen who brought his wife to the U.S. on a K-1 visa.
Goodlatte said there was insufficient evidence to indicate the couple met in person prior to approval of her visa.
The House Judiciary Committee chairman said earlier this week his committee would draft a bill “to reform visa security processing, including K-1 visas, and ensure that open source information is reviewed as a part of the background check for visa applicants.”
The legislation would require in-person interviews for both the applicant and the American sponsor before a visa is granted.
Authorities say Malik and Farook killed 14 and injured 22 when they opened fire on the Regional Inland Center in San Bernardino earlier this month.
Malik reportedly pledged her allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on a social media post during the attack.
The couple was later killed in a shootout with police.