Army Probes Wide-Ranging Contractor Fraud

(AP)  From high-dollar fraud to conspiracy to bribery and bid rigging, Army investigators have opened up to 50 criminal probes involving battlefield contractors in the war in Iraq and the U.S. fight against terrorism, The Associated Press has learned.

Senior contracting officials, government employees, residents of other countries and, in some cases, U.S. military personnel have been implicated in millions of dollars of fraud allegations.

"All of these involve operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait," Chris Grey, a spokesman for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, confirmed Saturday to the AP.

"CID agents will pursue leads and the truth wherever it may take us," Grey said. "We take this very seriously."

Battlefield contractors have been implicated in allegations of fraud and abuse since the war in Iraq began in spring 2003. A special inspector general office that focused solely on reconstruction spending in Iraq developed cases that led to four criminal convictions.

The problems stem in part from the Pentagon's struggle to get a handle on the unprecedented number of contractors now helping run the nation's wars. Contractors are used in battle zones to do nearly everything but fight. They run cafeterias and laundries for troops, move supplies, run communication systems and repair weapons systems.

Special agents from the Army's major procurement fraud unit recently were dispatched to Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, where they are "working closely and sharing information with other law enforcement agencies in the region," Grey said.

One case involves an Army chief warrant officer accused of taking a $50,000 bribe to steer a contract for paper products and plastic flatware away from a government contractor and to a Kuwaiti company, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday in federal court at Rock Island, Ill.

Prosecutors say the officer took the bribe while at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait, while he was the Army's food service adviser for Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, according to the indictment. The officer is also accused of trying to smuggle $40,000 in undeclared cash into the United States on a December 2005 flight from Kuwait to Dover, Del.

Other cases involve a government officer manipulating a contract in exchange for large bridges, a contractor making false claims against the government and an official accepting gratuities. The cases range in type, seriousness and complexity and involve contractors both inside and outside the United States.

The Pentagon has viewed outsourcing a wide variety of military tasks as much more efficient, leaving troops trained in combat to the business of war.

But the Government Accountability Office reported in December that the military has been losing millions of dollars because it cannot monitor industry workers in far-flung locations.

The Defense Department's inability to manage contractors effectively has hurt military operations and unit morale and cost the Pentagon money, the GAO said.

Some 60,000 contractors have been supporting the Army in Southwest Asia, which includes Iraq. That compares with 9,200 contractors in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Commanders are often unsure how many contractors use their bases and require food, housing and protection, according to the report. One Army official said the service estimates losing about $43 million each year on free meals provided to contractors who also get a food allowance.

The new Democratic Congress plans to ramp up oversight of the billions of dollars being spent in Iraq, including dollars awarded to contractors. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, has said he plans to target contractor abuse.

[annd2302]

ariz1944 Posted

This operational site is "Managed" by a retired WO-5, now making $150,000 a year, but is too st............

1944, I have a serious reason for this inquiry. Is this W0-5"s first initial a "D" as in David ?????????

[olijnyk1]

I recently spent some time overseas (20 months) in Afghanistan and Iraq as support to the Army-KBR and Army Corp of Engineers-Contrack Intnl'Inc. I can only say that the waste of our money is evident everywhere. Most contractors hired do not deliver quality and for the most part don%u2019t care. The bottom line is to make lots of money.
* Environmental: Water well systems would be compromised with generators leaking oil and or fuel being spilt nearby. *Health: Discovered contaminated sources.(ie Chromium 6, Water, Fuel, Silicosis, Histoplasmosis etc. ) in populated US Military settings also having US civilians working in these areas, the lack of urgency and complacency of those in charge, both military and civilian, bordered on criminal. The tests were always in favor of those so eager to put the situation behind them.
*Safety; Minimal at best.*Human Rights: Contractor from other countries gather in this environment and create at times what I call the %u201CLord of the Flies%u201D society. The losers and the ones on the bottom are the Local Nationals. They will put up with the most severe abuses so that they can provide for their family*Waste: A whole host of waste in many %u201Crehabilitation%u201D projects. The truth is that most projects have had huge delays and waste because of mismanagement, extortion, embezzlement and corruption.
I was penalized (threatened &terminated) internally for bringing these issues up with both the contractor and the military.

[crater7]

HOW DO YOU SPELL HALLIBURTON? CHENEY?

[gtorlando]

These thefts should be tried as organized crime.

[karlimhof]

THIS IS THE BIGEEST RIP-OFF OF MODERN TIMES - COULD ALMOST BE FUNNY IF THERE WERENT SO MANY DEAD.

BUSH BUSINESS VENTURE REAPS GLOBAL PROFITS!!

[j-whitman]

Ariz 1944,,, Bring your son home, it was a noble effort, but a totally missguided cause led by a terrible administration.

[ariz1944]

My son is in Iraq, as a contractor, and he has told me he sees SO much waste. They just flew him from his camp, to another, and then on to is destination, to handle an "EMERGENCY". When he got there, he found a generator not runing, due to a broken radiator hose. Not only did they not have a replacement, they had not even ordered one. This operational site is "Managed" by a retired WO-5, now making $150,000 a year, but is too stupid to get a replacement hose from Kiuate, 4 hours away by road, 15 min by hilocopter. My son was going to pay Cat out of his own pocket, $145.00 for the hose, but was told the Govt would not repay him for this. HOW F-ing STUPID CAN THEY BE?

[bluestardad]

Media
Quit covering these animals in the Middle East and let them butcher themselves off camera. We have spent 50 years of time blood and money trying to civilize them to western standards and it does not work. Do they own your Job or what? Quit Covering them!

[inventagod]

The greed of Halliburton knows no limits.
Just as the greed of the Bu$h administration is never satisfied.
History will never be kind to the USA for the huge abortion called Iraq.
If Bu$h is allowed to invade Iran, the abortion will be named Armageddon....

[clemenhagen1]

Fleshmonger: Great post on the privatization of the military. It's a front for fraud, pure and simple.

Anybody catch how Bush consistently presents himself as a modern-day Truman: low poll numbers but the gumption to fight the good fight. What a joke! Truman was an unknown senator from Missouri who ecked out an election in 1940. When the war ramped up and we converted our industries over to war production, Truman knew that rampant fraud not only cost us money but jeopardized the safety of the troops. The select committee formed to investigate came to be known as the Truman Committee. Truman personally drove all over the country to inspect plants, military bases, etc. to make sure war profiteering did not damage the war effort. He saved billions of dollars and countless lives. George Bush, I hate to break it to you pal, but you ain't got a drop of Truman in you.