The Campaign Legal Center filed a formal complaint with the DOJ's Inspector General on March 4, 2026, requesting an investigation into whether FBI Director Kash Patel violated federal travel regulations by failing to reimburse the government for at least 10 trips involving personal travel on government aircraft.
The most notable trip was to Milan, Italy, for the 2026 Winter Olympics. Patel used the FBI jet to fly to Milan, where his only “official business” was a 20-minute security briefing. He then attended the US men's hockey gold medal game and was filmed drinking beer in the locker room with the team.
Patel only reimburses the cost of a commercial ticket for personal travel, while operating the FBI aircraft costs tens of thousands of dollars more per trip. Across 10+ trips, the taxpayer cost is substantial.
Trump himself reportedly told Patel he “didn't like his Olympics hijinks” — a rare rebuke. But Patel's pattern of using government aircraft for personal travel continues. The FBI claimed the Milan trip was “long-planned official business,” a claim undermined by the 20-minute meeting followed by hours of hockey and beer.
By July 2026 the scrutiny had hardened into a congressional investigation, and it was not only Democratic. Republican Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley wrote to Patel demanding answers about luxury cars, his use of government aircraft, and whether he had reimbursed taxpayers for personal travel. Top Judiciary Democrats followed. In a July 8 letter, Rep. Jamie Raskin and Sen. Dick Durbin opened an investigation into what they called the “misuse” of taxpayer funds for “luxury” expenses, including a fleet of BMWs, and travel that mixed official business with jet skiing, helicopter tours, and “VIP snorkeling” in Hawaii. Sources told the lawmakers Patel's travel was “out of control,” and that an FBI attaché office in Wellington, New Zealand, “may have been established in part to facilitate or justify a sightseeing trip there.” Raskin and Durbin wrote: “The American people deserve an FBI Director focused on keeping us all safe rather than jet-setting to check off personal bucket list items.”