Uvalde school police chief says he is cooperating with Robb Elementary shooting investigation: report

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The Texas police chief who has been taking criticism for his handling of the Uvalde school shooting reportedly said Wednesday that he has been speaking with state investigators, hours after they said he wasn’t cooperating. 

Pete Arredondo, who oversees law enforcement in the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, told CNN outside his home that "I am in contact with the [Texas] Department of Public Safety every day." 

Arredondo also said his swearing-in Tuesday as a Uvalde city council member was a "private" event out of respect for the grieving families. 

On Tuesday, the Texas Department of Public Safety told Fox News that Arredondo – who they say was the on-scene commander at Robb Elementary during the time of the mass shooting last week – wasn’t cooperating with their investigation into the police's response. 

Uvalde School Police Chief Pete Arredondo, third from left, stands during a news conference outside the Robb Elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. The local police and school district police have reportedly stopped cooperating with state investigators into the mass shooting and a review into the police response. (AP)

UVALDE SCHOOL POLICE CHIEF SWORN IN AS CITY COUNCIL MEMBER DESPITE NOT RESPONDING TO STATE INVESTIGATORS 

"The Uvalde Police Department and Uvalde CISD Police have been cooperating with investigators," their statement said. "The chief of the Uvalde CISD Police provided an initial interview but has not responded to a request for a follow-up interview with the Texas Rangers that was made two days ago," it added. 

A campaign sign for Pete Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, is seen in Uvalde, Texas, on Monday, May 30. Arredondo was the on-scene commander during the shooting, officials say. (AP/Jae C. Hong)

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The Uvalde CISD police did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday from Fox News Digital. 

Law enforcement, and other first responders, gather outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP/Dario Lopez-Mills)

Local authorities have come under pressure since a Friday press conference in which Steven McCraw, the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said the delayed police response to the mass shooting was "the wrong decision." 

Fox News’ Paul Best contributed to this report.