Story highlights Senate panel chairman said the Donald Trump obstruction charge isn't in their purview

The Justice Department has a special counsel investigating possible criminal charges

(CNN) The Senate intelligence committee won't probe whether President Donald Trump obstructed justice over the FBI's investigation into his former associates and their contacts with Russian officials, leaving the criminal inquiry to special counsel Robert Mueller.

After meeting with Mueller in a classified session , the leaders of the Senate panel indicated that their inquiry would steer clear of obstruction of justice to focus instead on Russia meddling in the elections -- and whether there was any Trump campaign collusion with officials tied to the Kremlin.

"Obstruction is criminal -- there's a criminal aspect to that," committee Chairman Sen. Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, told CNN Thursday. "It's never been part of our" investigation.

Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the vice chairman, told CNN: "The criminal piece of the investigation will be handled by the special counsel, but if we find facts we can turn this over to the special counsel" and "report them" to Mueller's office.

The comments come amid reports that the special counsel is seeking to interview intelligence officials who reportedly were asked by Trump to help tamp down the notion of any Trump campaign collusion with the Russians.

Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Sen. Richard Burr (R) (R-NC) and ranking member Sen. Mark Warner (L) (D-VA) listen to testimony during a hearing March 30. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)