Devin Patrick Kelley
Devin Patrick KelleyReuters

The United States Air Force said on Monday it had failed to submit information about Texas church shooting suspect Devin Kelley's convictions to the FBI.

The failure was a result of what one law enforcement source described to ABC News as an “administrative error”.

Had the conviction information been entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check (NCIC) System, it should have prevented the sale of the firearms Kelley purchased to carry out the deadly rampage in Sutherland Springs, Texas.

Kelley was convicted by a military court in 2012 on charges of assault and aggravated assault on his then-wife and a child, which should have prevented him from purchasing firearms, an Air Force official said Monday, according to ABC News.

The Air Force has launched a review into how Kelley's criminal records were handled and why he was able to purchase a gun after being convicted on the domestic violence-related charges.

The Pentagon has also announced that the Department of Defense’s Inspector General will review the handling of Kelley’s records and will also review relevant policies and procedures to ensure records from other military cases have been reported correctly.

"Initial information indicates that Kelley’s domestic violence offense was not entered into the National Criminal Information Center database by the Holloman Air Force Base Office of Special Investigation," a statement from the Air Force reads.

Kelley was in the U.S. Air Force from January 2010 to May 2014, serving mainly at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, military records show.

In 2012, he pleaded guilty to two charges of assault and battery on his then-wife and aggravated assault on his infant stepson. Five other charges that included multiple incidents in which he allegedly aimed either a loaded or unloaded firearm at his wife were withdrawn as part of the plea deal.

As part of his conviction, Kelley received a bad conduct discharge but not a dishonorable discharge that automatically prevents a former military service member from purchasing a firearm, noted ABC News.

Meanwhile, other reports on Monday described Kelley as a social outcast who "preached" atheism. Friends and acquaintances of Kelley said he was "creepy" and "weird."