Both Congress and the FBI are running parallel investigations of the July 13 assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump at an outdoor campaign rally, but it would appear that there is little, if any, communication or cooperation between the dual probes.

The FBI is now pushing back against allegations that it obstructed the congressional investigation with its premature release of the deceased would-be assassin's body and the premature clean-up and release of the crime scene, according to Fox News.

Yet, in attempting to refute the accusations from Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA), a former police officer who conducted a preliminary investigation earlier this month on behalf of a special bipartisan congressional July 13 Task Force, the FBI appeared to confirm the details of the congressman's claims.

Shooter's body quickly released for cremation

On August 12, Rep. Higgins submitted to Task Force Chairman Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) a six-page preliminary investigative report that outlined the evidence, facts, and observations he had obtained through around 20 hours of investigation over three days of the Butler County Fairground site where the attempted assassination occurred during former President Trump's July 13 campaign rally.

In his "Observations of Note," Higgins wrote of the deceased shooter, "My effort to examine Crooks’ body on Monday, August 5, caused quite a stir and revealed a disturbing fact … the FBI released the body for cremation 10 days after J13."

"On J23, Crooks was gone. Nobody knew this until Monday, August 5, including the County Coroner, law enforcement, Sheriff, etc," he continued. "Yes, Butler County Coroner technically had legal authority over the body, but I spoke with the Coroner, and he would have never released Crooks’ body to the family for cremation or burial without specific permission from the FBI."

Crime scene released, cleaned up prematurely; autopsy and coroner's report late

In his preliminary report, Rep. Higgins also observed that to the "surprise," "dismay," and "suspicion" of local first responders, the FBI "released the crime scene after just 3 days." The congressman pointed out that the FBI was "fully aware" that Congress was also investigating the incident and that they "had to know that releasing the J13 crime scene would injure the immediate observations of any following investigation."

He further noted that the FBI "cleaned up biological evidence from the crime scene, which is unheard of. Cops don’t do that, ever." The congressman also wrote that, at least as of the date of his investigation in early August, the autopsy and coroner's report were "late," which, paired with the early release of the body for cremation, meant that nobody would "know 100% if the coroner’s report and the autopsy report are accurate. We will actually never know."

"Again, similar to releasing the crime scene and scrubbing crime scene biological evidence ... this action by the FBI can only be described by any reasonable man as an obstruction to any following investigative effort," Higgins wrote, and after reiterating that the FBI knew Congress had its own investigation, added, "Why, then, by what measure, would the FBI release his body to the family for cremation? This pattern of investigative scorched earth by the FBI is quite troubling."

FBI responds to Higgins' accusations

Local ABC affiliate WTAE reported that the FBI released a statement that pushed back against the claims made by Rep. Higgins but also seemed to confirm that what the congressman had alleged was at least partially true.

Claiming the FBI was "surprised" and "disturbed" by the allegations of obstruction, a spokesperson said, "Any suggestion the FBI is interfering with congressional efforts to look into the attempted assassination which took place in Butler, Pennsylvania, is inaccurate and unfounded."

The Bureau insisted they had "followed normal procedures in the handling of the crime scene and evidence" and remained "committed to maximum transparency as we continue to brief Congress and publish information for the public regarding the ongoing investigation."

As to the specific allegations raised by Higgins, such as the early release of the crime scene to the property owners, the FBI spokesperson asserted that "Nothing was rushed and everything was documented as part of the investigation."

The spokesperson further insisted that arranging for the prompt clean-up of the rooftop site where the shooter was killed as well as the release of his body to his family after only 10 days were both "in keeping with normal procedures."