The Mother Of All Heists

Steve Kroft Reports On Disappearance Of More Than $500 Million To Equip Iraqi Army

(CBS)  Judge Radhi was more than happy to walk 60 Minutes through the case. Aside from the hundreds of millions of dollars that were stolen, Radhi says much of the equipment actually delivered to the Iraqi military was useless junk, like Soviet-era helicopters, some of which were considered unfit to fly, bullet proof vests that fell apart after a few weeks, and a shipment of ammunition so old one of the people inspecting it feared it might blow up.

"Instead of aircraft, we received mobile hospitals. What would an army without aircraft do with mobile hospitals?" Radhi asks. "Instead, of getting planes and tanks and vehicles, and weapons that we needed, we got materials that there really was not a big need for."

In October 2005, Judge Radhi obtained arrest warrants for some of the top officials in the Ministry of Defense, and almost all of them fled the country, including former Defense Minister Hazem Shaalan, who is believed to be in Europe or the Middle East.

60 Minutes did manage to locate one of Shaalan’s top deputies, Ziad Cattan, who was in charge of military procurement. 60 Minutes found him in Paris, happy to be there and not terribly concerned.

Cattan says he's aware there's a warrant out for his arrest.

"If you went to Baghdad, you’d be arrested," Kroft says.

"No, nobody arrest me…they will kill me," he replies, laughing.

The son of a retired Iraqi general, Cattan had been living in Poland until a few days before the U.S. invasion, running a pizza parlor in Germany and importing and exporting used cars. But his can-do attitude and ability to speak English impressed the Americans, including Ambassador Bremer, who praised Cattan in his memoirs. After a few months working with the coalition on neighborhood councils, Cattan was given a position in the new Ministry of Defense.

Cattan says he was recruited for this job by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). He admits he did not have any experience in military procurement.

To make up for this obvious deficiency, Cattan was sent off to the National Defense University in Washington D.C. for a few weeks of training, and eventually placed in charge of buying $1.2 billion worth of equipment for the Iraqi military.

Cattan tells Kroft that "it isn't true" that $800 million was stolen. He says the charges are politically motivated and that he can account for every single dinar.

"All equipment with this $1,200,000,000 it is now a day in Iraq," Cattan tells Kroft.

"I have documentation. I give it to you in your hands," he says, insisting that the equipment was delivered.

"Well, this is a big misunderstanding. I mean, we're talking about $800 million," Kroft says.

"Yes, it is here. I can show you,” he says, holding up photos of military vehicles and equipment. “This is BTR, BTR 80 from Hungarian. This is ambulances, 2005 production, also in Iraq nowaday. This is mobile kitchen, also in Iraq nowadays," Cattan replies.

"This is just pictures of equipment," Kroft states.

"Yeah. But, you can prove it, if you wanted to do. Nobody want to prove it. That's the problem," Cattan replies.

60 Minutes took all of Cattan’s documentation, had it translated into English, and gave it to Jane’s, one of the world’s leading authorities on military hardware. At the time, John Kenkel was the senior director of consulting, advises countries on military purchases.

Asked if he would have bought the same equipment for the Iraqi army if he had $1.2 billion to spend, Kenkel says, "That’s the big question, nobody really knows what they bought."

Kenkel told Kroft the documents Cattan provided were so vague that he couldn’t tell what had been ordered or whether it had ever been delivered.

"I think the biggest thing was that you couldn't identify what the equipment was that was actually being delivered. To say that you were being delivered a gun doesn't necessarily mean anything in terms of what you're getting," Kenkel says.

"Can you think of another government in the world that would have spent $1.2 billion this way on military equipment?" Kroft asks.

"Nobody that you would consider on the up and up," Kenkel says, laughing.

[infam_rider]

I hope people reread this.

Maybe then.. they will point fingers at the countries allowing these thieves to spend that stolen money in their country. You know the rich guys building villas. Maybe those countries would expediate them to Iraq to stand trial and be accountable.

Amazing.. if I said Iraq had a sandstorm someone would find a way to point a finger at Bush.

I stopped blaming the President when Jimmy Carter was in office. That's why we have a system peeps.. checks and balances.

[bm6005]

What part of this surprises anyone? It's time, people, to march down Pennsylvania Ave. with pitchforks, shovels and torches, to take America back from this SCUM in Washington!!

[jjp735i]

"no one in the U.S. government would talk on camera about the missing $800 million. Off-camera, 60 Minutes was told that this was Iraqi money, spent by a sovereign Iraqi government, and therefore the Iraqis%u2019 business".

Our government is wrong! That was taxpayer money and yes our government should account for all of it. Shame on the media for not pushing the White House on this issue over the years. A simple report and repeat of old news is not reporting.

[mayihavemore]

Received training at National Defense University Washington, D.C. He doesnt remember! Can we train them or what? Priceless!

[formrusmcsgt]

Stabilizing Iraq could take as long as a decade, says the U.S. commander in Baghdad.

"In fact, typically, I think historically, counterinsurgency operations have gone at least nine or 10 years," Gen. David Petraeus said Sunday.

----

Petraus apparently is ignorant of Guatemala's 36 year insurgency or the 40 year old insurgencies in the Phillipines and Colombia that continue today.

[formrusmcsgt]

Yet more testimony to the absolute ineptitude of the Bush administration and it's absolutely woeful oversight.

Another disgrace for America at the hands of the neocons. If they couldn't take steps backwards, they'd take no steps at all.

[incog-nito]

DigitalGravy:

You have no clue what you're talking about. These funds are underwritten by the U.S. government. The U.S. taxpayers will have to pay for it, with interest.

[wogerwabbit]

"too many people in positions of power and authority in the new Iraq have been in one way or another found with their hands inside the cookie jar. And if they are brought to trial it will cast a very disparaging light on those people who had supported them and brought them to this position of power and authority."

which is exactly what's happing in America today and explains the grovelling neocon shills we suffer through here in order to attempt itelligent discourse about relevant issues.

Lars, patriot and the be-atch (can't remember her name), are just the most blatent sores on the noecon posterior so nakedly exposed to us in these surreal times. They're mooning us on the way out the door and I salute them, but these morons gotta go.

[pastdue1]

These monies are part of the "War on Terror," so mismanagement need not be justified nor traced. Besides, according to the Kentucky senator the blame is to be laid on the Iraqi. What a misnomer the "war on terror" phrase is. It was coined to confuse, defend and justify what is currently going on. Will we ever learn not to be deluded by slogans intended to instill fear.

[oleander8]

Same thing happened with a succession rulers in Viet Nam. The rich got richer and the US paid for it. And it may have been borrowed from China but the US still has to pay it back.

[digitalgravy]

Well folks, I got news for you. That money stolen or evaporated or whatever... is all borrowed, no taxes period. Everyone thinks its our tax dollars.
Its not, its Chinese, Arab and off shore funds.
These funds will never be payed back! It is lost forever the people who lent it only think its going to be payed back. Are they in for a surprise LOL.
America is banko, yup, banko... it all borrowed as in its only numbers carried over from one column to another. Borrowed as in its carried over onto the backs of real greedy types. Just try and cash it in for say real GOLD... never happen period.
So if Halliburton, KBR or Rockefeller think they glommed some extra money, think again.
Don't worry tax payers, you will never ever pay back those moneys.
Tomorrow's lesson "How 911 pays or the gift that just keeps on giving"!

[digitalgravy]

Well folks, I got news for you. That money stolen or evaporated or whatever... is all borrowed, no taxes period. Everyone thinks its our tax dollars.
Its not, its Chinese, Arab and off shore funds.
These funds will never be payed back! It is lost forever the people who lent it only think its going to be payed back. Are they in for a surprise LOL.
America is banko, yup, banko... it all borrowed as in its only numbers carried over from one column to another. Borrowed as in its carried over onto the backs of real greedy types. Just try and cash it in for say real GOLD... never happen period.
So if Halliburton, KBR or Rockefeller think they glommed some extra money, think again.
Don't worry tax payers, you will never ever pay back those moneys.
Tomorrow's lesson "How 911 pays or the gift that just keeps on giving"!

[erinyc]

The abominable disregard for US tax paying citizens and vulnerable Iraqi citizens aside, the question still remains - who is accountable. Perhaps if the Bush administration gets charged with the war crimes they have instigated, there might be some restitution for this heist as well. But alas, this too will probably remain wishful thinking.

[erinyc]

The abominable disregard for US tax paying citizens and vulnerable Iraqi citizens aside, the question still remains - who is accountable. Perhaps if the Bush administration gets charged with the war crimes they have instigated, there might be some restitution for this heist as well. But alas, this too will probably remain wishful thinking.

[erinyc]

The abominable disregard for US tax paying citizens and vulnerable Iraqi citizens aside, the question still remains - who is accountable. Perhaps if the Bush administration gets charged with the war crimes they have instigated, there might be some restitution for this heist as well. But alas, this too will probably remain wishful thinking.

[buddica]

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain (the one stuffing large amounts of money into a brief case) The omni impotent Bush administration knows what's best for us. Billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of lives lost, all to "prove" that Daddy should have gone into Baghdad in '91 to scratch the thirty year itch of the neocons. I blame Babs. If she would have backhanded the smirking chimp when he was little we wouldn't have to suffer (and neither would the rest of the world) with a chicken hawk that could have, should have, but didn't man up during 'Nam. Nothing like trying to prove your man hood by killing other people's kids, destroying a sovereign nation, and bankrupting our own nation. Goddess, save us all.

[markdove1]

So, let me get this straight....they give our money to someone who cannot keep track of it...it gets stolen....and now I bet you I will have to pay taxes to make up for what was stolen. I bet if we would not have given so much away....well...we'd still have to pay taxes to give money to someone else who cannot manage it...the US Government....

[guyrugby]

This is a tiny drop in the bucket compared to what has dissappeared from our own Pentagon on the watch of Don Rumsfeld. see the following:
http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_1047.shtml
Following Zakheim and Pentagon trillions to Israel and 9-11
By Jerry Mazza
Online Journal Associate Editor
Think of this as part two of Recherche du trillions perdu, my Online Journal article on Dov Zakheim, former Bush appointee as Pentagon Comptroller from May 4, 2001 to March 10, 2004. At that time he was unable to explain the disappearance of $1 trillion dollars. Actually, nearly three years earlier, Donald Rumsfeld announced on September 10, 2001 that an audit discovered $2.3 trillion was also missing from the Pentagon books. That story, as I mentioned, was buried under 9-11%u2019s rubble. The two sums disappeared on Zakheim%u2019s watch.

Yet on May 6, 2004, Zakheim took a lucrative position at Booz Allen Hamilton, one of the most prestigious strategy consulting firms in the world. One of its clients then was Blessed Relief, a charity said to be a front for Osama bin Laden. Booz, Allen & Hamilton then also worked closely with DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is the research arm of the Department of Defense. So the dark card was shifted to another part of the deck.
ABCNNBCBS doesn't have the balls to investigate
anything like this at all.

[mmeta]

God help us. Let me get this straight - there is 800 million dollars missing and some of this money may have ended up in the hands of the insurgents that are fighting against us? Gives new meaning to the word misappropriation. Well, not to worry. How many weapons, bombs, 737s, etc. can a lousy couple hundred million buy anyway? Er - the Admin's not worried about it, why should I be? I'm safer now that we've gone into Iraq. (Its just that pesky problem of getting out.)

One question though El Presidente - how are you going to tell American militay families that not only was it the unaccounted for/misused funds that probably killed their husbands, wifes, sons & daughters but oh yeah, we need an approval for more money to carry on this ridiculous & sad war. Just need the approval though, no real money - we can just use a little tool we like to call deficit spending. No good Republican would ever want to use the T word to have to actually pay for this foolishness.

Thanks George, ***, Don and Bremmer - doing a bang up job. It is absolutely F.U.B.A.R. boys. Have someone in cammo interpret that for you.

[bill_alex-va]

The lack of cooperation from US and other international authorities is accurate and disheartening Posted by MHardiman2 at 10:24 AM : Oct 23, 2006 This is a Great POST.
What are we doing mr. bush and mr. cheney? Please answer the g*d dammed question! We Want Answers