Washington (CNN)Sen. Thom Tillis called on his Republican colleague and fellow North Carolinian Richard Burr to offer an "explanation" of his stock sales ahead of the coronavirus pandemic.

       Burr, who leads the Senate Intelligence Committee, has been scrutinized for selling up to $1.7 million in stocks in February after he received closed-door briefings about the virus before the market began trending downward. He has denied any wrongdoing -- saying he relied only on public news reports in making the sales -- and has called for an ethics review into the matter.

       "Well, regardless of what happens with the investigation, I think Senator Burr owes everybody in North Carolina and the United States an explanation, and we'll see where the investigation goes," Tillis, who is up for reelection later this year, told Hugh Hewitt in a radio interview on Wednesday.

       He would not say if Burr, who has not stepped away from any of his roles, should step down from his position, but said, "With respect to his chairmanship, that's a decision that he and -- that would be better left to him and the leadership," he said.

       CNN has reached out to Burr's office for comment on Tillis' remarks, which echo a statement he made last month when the news broke about the sales. A call to the office of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was not immediately returned.

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       The Justice Department is reviewing stock transactions made by Burr and other lawmakers before financial markets sharply plunged from the impact of the virus's spread. There's no indication that any of the sales, including Burr's, broke any laws or ran afoul of Senate rules.

       Tillis is not the only Republican to criticize Burr. Florida's Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted last month that Burr staying in his powerful position is "not fair" compared with the backlash that former Rep. Katie Hill, a California Democrat, received after having an affair with a staffer.

       CNN's David Shortell, Evan Perez, Jeremy Herb and Kara Scannell contributed to this report.

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